27 Aug Exploring Artificial Intelligence with a Christian Worldview

What is AI?
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is an ambitious endeavour by scientists to replicate the cognitive abilities of the human brain. It involves the simulation of human intelligence by machines. The term “artificial” highlights the contrast with natural intelligence. AI operates by transforming every input (whether text, image, video, etc.) into a multidimensional numerical array, forming complex relationships between these inputs and their outputs through extensive data analysis. The relationship learnt is an approximation good enough for human standards.

What AI is Not?
Contrary to some misconceptions, AI is not a program or software. Instead, the software serves as a medium that allows humans to interact with AI’s capabilities meaningfully, facilitating the simulation of human thought and learning processes.

Human Intelligence and Artificial Intelligence
Human Intelligence (HI) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) differ significantly in their capabilities, nature, and essence. While HI encompasses intention, emotion and passion, driving humans to act with purpose and feeling, AI can at best simulate human-like behaviors without truly experiencing these qualities. Humans excel at strategic planning and critical thinking, leveraging their innate abilities to navigate complex problems and create innovative solutions. In contrast, AI often struggles with these tasks, relying instead on patterns seen in data. Creativity in humans is original and boundless, often inspired by unseen elements and abstract thinking, whereas AI’s “creativity” is limited to recombining known elements based on its training.
Humans possess common sense and can learn quickly from just a few examples, adapting to new contexts with ease — a stark contrast to AI, which requires large datasets and extensive resources to learn, often with poor ability to transfer knowledge to new contexts. AI models require millions of examples to learn, relying on variation and feedback, whereas a child can learn to recognize objects like cats with minimal examples. HI is deeply connected to meaning, morality, and ethics, enabling individuals to discern right from wrong guided by the Word of God. AI, however, lacks this innate knowledge, operating within the confines of a network of arrays and numerical data.

These fundamental distinctions underscore the unique attributes of human intelligence that AI, despite its advancements, cannot truly embody or replace.

Furthermore, human intelligence is intrinsically linked to the capacity for forming relationships with God and fellow humans,
a profound aspect of existence that AI, as a set of algorithms and numbers, cannot replicate or comprehend.

The Dangers of AI
– The Black-Box Nature: The opaque nature of AI systems pose challenges, as their learning processes and decision-making rationales are not fully transparent or understandable to humans. This has led to a push for explainable AI, which aims to make AI’s operations more transparent and trustworthy.
– Disruption in the Job Market: The rise of AI necessitates a fundamental re-evaluation of employment, skills training, and education to adapt to the changing landscape.
– AI Cannot Do Everything: Over-reliance on AI is a temptation we have to resist.
– AI Has Inbuilt Biases: Since AI is trained from data generated by human beings, the same biases are carried onto AI models as well.
– AI is not always right: Yes, It lacks common sense. And at times, it can make mistakes.
– Cybersecurity: Surveillance, privacy, and manipulation in many forms is a risk since a few individuals control most of the AI developments.
– Laziness: As everything will be sped up, we may have more free time, which is good if it drives us to spend time with God and people. But instead, AI could make us lazy.

How AI Can Enhance Our Lives?
Just as electricity revolutionized the world, AI is set to transform every aspect of our lives. Its integration into various sectors is just beginning, with potential applications that exceed our current understanding.
– Automation and Efficiency: AI excels in automating tasks, thereby increasing efficiency in industries such as manufacturing, logistics, and customer service.
– Data Analysis and Prediction: With its unparalleled ability to analyse vast datasets, AI assists in making predictions and understanding trends across sectors like healthcare, education, and finance.
– Healthcare and Personalized Medicine: AI’s potential in healthcare includes personalized medicine based on genetic and lifestyle information, improving diagnostics, treatment plans, and predictions.
– Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs): AI has accelerated BCIs like Neuralink that read signal changes using electrodes to control devices such as robotic limbs, cursors. It can also write thoughts into the brain.
– Quantum Computing: In the next few years, AI is expected to speed up advancing quantum computing technologies, leading to breakthroughs in cryptography and computational efficiency.
– Creativity: AI models are very creative in mixing and matching and creating newer pieces based on what they have already seen.
– Cognitive Assistance: AI could be integrated more deeply into human cognition, acting as a real-time, interactive cognitive assistant. This could go beyond current applications like real-time translation of foreign languages, enabling enhanced memory recall and augmented learning capabilities.
– Social and Emotional Support: AI has the potential to serve as a social companion, offering mental health support and counselling.
– Education: AI can revolutionize education by providing personalized learning experiences that adapt to the individual needs, strengths, and weaknesses of each student, making education more accessible and effective for all learners.
– Accessibility Enhancements: AI-driven tools are making technology more accessible, with applications like real-time speech-to-text for hearing-impaired users and navigation assistance for the visually impaired, improving independence and quality of life.
– Bioengineering: In bioengineering, AI’s data analysis capabilities are being harnessed to design and develop new biological systems and processes, such as custom organisms for pollution cleanup or optimized algae for biofuel production.

Narrow and General AI
– Narrow AI: Also known as Weak AI, refers to artificial intelligence systems designed and trained for a specific task. These AI systems operate under a limited pre-defined range or context and do not possess general reasoning or cognitive abilities beyond their specific task. Most of today’s AI would fall under this category. But this is fast changing.
AGI: Artificial General Intelligence represents a level of artificial intelligence that can understand, learn, and apply its intelligence to solve any problem with the same degree of competence as a human being. AGI would be capable of reasoning, problem-solving, and abstract thinking across diverse domains, not limited to specific tasks or contexts.
The Turing Test: The Turing Test, proposed by Alan Turing in 1950, remains a foundational benchmark for AI’s capability to mimic human intelligence convincingly. As AI begins to pass this test in various domains, surpassing human performance, we stand on the brink of a new era where the line between human and machine intelligence blurs.

Christian Perspective
– Human Value: We are created in the image of God, which gives us inherent dignity and value. AI technologies are expected to respect and enhance human dignity rather than diminish or devalue human worth. Identifying and protecting the vulnerable should be a priority.
– Stewardship: We are responsible stewards of God’s creation, including technological advancements. AI should be guided by ethical principles and stay within a boundary that reflects stewardship.
– Purpose of Work: AI has the potential to make several jobs disappear and also create several more. It is more likely that we will rethink the purpose of work and perform more meaningful tasks than mundane jobs.
– Personal Bible Study: This fascinates me the most. AI can help us get deep, personalized insights and uncover connections across themes, verses, and biblical narratives. The Bible and every field of study (science, maths, biology, astronomy, etc.) point to God, and AI can help us uncover relationships that we were unable to see.
– Mission: I think we missed the smartphone revolution. Now there is another opportunity. AI can transform the way we present the gospel. We can custom-build AI-driven digital platforms, apps, chatbots, etc., both at a personal level and as a community.
– Morality: AI can synthesize insights, but it is us, through the scripture, who define what is right and what is wrong, Not AI.

Potential action steps
As stewards of God’s creation, we are uniquely positioned to influence the trajectory of AI in a manner that upholds human dignity, promotes justice, and cares for the least among us. By engaging with AI from a foundation of Christian ethics, we can contribute to the development of technologies that not only enhance our material well-being but also enrich our spiritual lives and relationships.

As Christians, let us approach AI with a positive mindset, seeing it not as a threat but as an opportunity to manifest the Kingdom of God on Earth.

Educate Yourself: Start by gaining a deeper understanding of AI and its potential impact on society. Knowledge is the first step toward meaningful engagement.

Use AI: Explore ways AI can be harnessed for personal and the broader community. Whether through personal study, creating content, enhancing gospel efforts, supporting humanitarian causes, or contributing to social justice, AI can be a powerful tool for good.

Foster Ethical AI Development: Advocate for and support AI initiatives that prioritize ethical standards, particularly those that protect privacy, ensure fairness.
Pray for Wisdom: As we chart unknown territories, seek God’s wisdom for discernment and guidance. Pray for those at the forefront of AI research and development, that they may be guided by ethical considerations and a vision for the common good.

Engage in Dialogue: Participate in discussions about the intersection of faith and technology. By fostering a dialogue between theologians, technologists, and policymakers, Christians can help shape a future where AI aligns with our highest values and aspirations.

Support Christian Technologists: Encourage and support fellow believers working in the field of AI, providing them with the community and resources they need to navigate their professions with faith and integrity.

Looking Forward
With AI, we can all speak one language, at least in the literal sense. Before it becomes another Babel tower moment, let the godly men get into action.

By actively engaging with AI, we can help steer this powerful technology towards outcomes that glorify God and advance His purposes in the world.

Dr. Philemon Daniel Associate Professor at NIT Hamirpur and author of 12 “Socho Kids” books that weave practical Christianity through everyday science themes for children (cartoonforchrist.in). Enjoys life in the beautiful pine groves of Himachal Pradesh with his wife and two daughters.