My Complicated Relationship with Robots
Finding My Way in the Dark
My glasses were off and I was trying to find my way to the bathroom, but I wasn’t at home where the familiar blobs and shapes could guide me. I was in unfamiliar territory. My arms were out and I was gently testing with my feet for every solid step to make sure I wasn’t going to fall or stub my toe on my way to the bathroom.
Growing up with very bad eyesight, I’ve always felt like I’m finding my way through a dark and blurry world. Always reaching out to keep myself from falling. To find the boundaries of the physical world.
Invisible Boundaries
But the older I get, the more I realize we’re all testing and setting boundaries all the time. Most of the time it’s an invisible boundary about our values, but occasionally it’s so we don’t stub our toe and fall on the way to the bathroom.
Sometimes it’s a very clear boundary and the wall is made of hard rough metaphorical bricks. Other times it’s like walking through a slow trickling waterfall to the other side where you fall over the edge into the abyss.
The AI Boundary
One boundary I’m currently rethinking is with AI. I have been diving deep into large language models and honestly been a bit obsessed… asking and testing lots of thoughts and ideas to find out how it works and responds. (Even though that is a constant change as well… hello ChatGPT 5!)
All this to say, I’m finding myself in a place of wanting to pull away. I think I’ve found part of my boundary and it has to do with human experiences.
I really thought it was going to help me save time by using it to write blog posts, emails, etc. But in the end, those are forms of contact with other humans. Whether it’s straight to your inbox or through SEO. Using it to create blogs, emails, or other forms of communication feels like adding another layer of separation between me and the people on the other side.
Staying Present
That doesn’t mean it’s not a helpful tool that I will never use, but I’m finding that one of my personal boundaries is that I want to be present in the words and work I send out to you in the world. Not just “my brand voice” copied from a PDF list of questions, but the real me.
There isn’t one time I’ve used OpenAI where I haven’t had to make adjustments, no matter the prompt input and I’ve had some long, thoughtful inputs. Something about the idea of just copying the text to rank on Google or send out an email feels wrong and somewhat manipulative.
Still Here
So while I have been experimenting heavily… poking, prodding, and asking questions, I’m not going anywhere. I’m still here on the other side of this computer, genuinely trying to reach you and learn about your lives and how I can best serve you as a photographer.
Anyway, that’s where I’m at right now… figuring out how to stay human while the robots learn to write better sentences. What about you? Have you found your “AI boundary” yet, or are you still poking the edges?
