How can we stop the power of AI?

September 20, 2024

Reflection by Danai Fuengshunut

As part of the Permacomputing Evenings series, Traces of Power: We Need to Talk About the AI took a critical look at artificial intelligence’s growing role in society. Supported by SURF, RIPE NCC, KC WdKA, an unsustainable research group, and Regieorgaan SIA, the event brought together three speakers who offered sharp critiques of AI’s impact on creativity, labor, and ethics. The session took place at Willem de Kooning Academy.

I. Artist Sarah Groff Hennigh-Palermo critiqued what she called “AI-esthetics”. Algorithmically generated art that prioritizes smoothness and perfection. She argued that this trend flattens the complexities of creativity, turning art into a formulaic, low-friction product. Instead, she advocated for “fuzzy art” that embraces imperfection and resists AI’s drive for conventional perfectionism.

II. Dasha Ilina delved into AI’s darker implications, focusing on its use in surveillance and control. She highlighted how countries like France continue to use biometric surveillance despite legal GPDR restrictions using the 2024 Olympics as a stepping stone. Ilina also exposed the hidden, often exploitative labor behind AI, stressing that the human cost of this technology is often overlooked in public discourse.

III. The final speaker Femke Snelting, critiqued cloud AI’s environmental and ethical impact. She argued that cloud AI is unsustainable, rooted in exploitative labor practices, and tied to industries that prioritize profit over equity. She provides 3 arguments of why we should stop the current development of cloud AI:

  1. Cloud AI is built on Agile software development principles that prioritize efficiency over ethical and societal considerations, often leading to decisions that prioritize speed and profitability over long-term impact.
  2. The infrastructure that sustains cloud AI—from sprawling data centers to the smartphones we use daily—is highly resource-intensive. This reliance on unsustainable energy consumption raises serious concerns about the ecological footprint of AI technologies.
  3. Cloud AI, according to the speaker, is deeply embedded in racial capitalism—a system that pursues perpetual growth and profit at the expense of equity and social justice. She also pointed to the connection between AI hardware, such as NVIDIA chips (nicknamed ‘complicit chips), and the war industry, questioning the ethics of artists and designers who rely on this technology while inadvertently supporting harmful sectors.

The event concluded with a call to resist by raising awareness, organizing events, and exploring alternative, more sustainable technologies. The speakers urged the audience to remain critical of AI’s societal impact. A key question raised during the Q&A session was about the reach of these critiques, given that social media and digital platforms—the very infrastructures being criticized—are essential for spreading this message. The speakers acknowledged the paradox. Disengaging from social platforms can feel like “social suicide,” as we are becoming increasingly dependent on these technologies.

More info: https://top.permacomputing.net/