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We so often discuss AI as a tool—for code, text, or images—that we forget the most important thing. AI is a mirror. It doesn't just generate answers; it reflects our own fears, hopes, and what we call our "soul." But can an algorithm understand the longing for the past or the joy of a casual glance?
Today, we present to ORIENT readers an essay-reflection on artificial intelligence through the eyes of someone trying to find the line between silicon logic and a living heart.
Will Artificial Intelligence Replace Us?
"Will artificial intelligence replace us?" I heard this question not at a conference or on an expert podcast. It came from a seven-year-old boy in line for his morning coffee, confidently explaining to his mother why schooling is no longer necessary.
-We'll be replaced by artificial intelligence. People won't need to work. Machines will do everything for us. People will just relax. So why should I study? - he asked reasonably. "That's what you think," Mom replied, not really delving into the argument.
I caught myself thinking: if a child asks this question, it means they've already stopped being futurologists.
There's another example, this time from adolescence.
My nephew is a teenager, gifted and driven, a multiple participant and winner of school competitions in biology, physics, and chemistry. From an early age, he planned to dedicate his life to science, considering medicine, microbiology, and a career in science.
But this year, in his senior year, he decided to study programming.
Why would a teenager with a genuine interest in medicine and microbiology make a choice not out of curiosity, but out of calculation?
Was this pragmatic choice made under pressure from talk of AI?
Does he feel that otherwise he "won't survive the future"?
These two episodes—the children's argument in the coffee shop and the graduate's conscious decision—in fact, speak to the same thing. Artificial intelligence certainly doesn't eliminate the need to learn. But it changes the very meaning of education. And if seven-year-olds are already questioning the need to learn because of AI, then the issue isn't about technology, but about what and why we teach and learn.
The fear that AI will "replace humans" speaks less to the capabilities of machines than to our lack of understanding of our own value.
Artificial intelligence lacks moral values, has no goals, bears no responsibility, and is incapable of empathy. It augments humans, but it doesn't replace human qualities: critical thinking, ethics, the ability to ask questions, understand context, and make decisions under uncertainty.
It's safe to say: many professions will change. AI will take over routine tasks. But it can't replace humans.
If my daughter asked me a question like that boy in the coffee shop, I would answer her like this: "A world in which 'machines will do everything for us' is a world where people have no choice. We need to learn in order to correctly perceive, choose, and understand reality and make mature decisions in life."
After reading these lines, you catch yourself with a strange feeling. We fear that AI will replace us, but aren't we actually afraid... of becoming unnecessary to ourselves? If we give machines the power to decide, choose, and feel, what will be the bottom line? Let's reflect on the paradoxes that emerge from this essay:
The Comfort Trap. A boy in a coffee shop dreams of relaxation while the machines work. But is happiness the absence of effort? AI can compose a symphony, but it won't feel the goosebumps from its sounds. We learn not to "perform functions," but to perceive the beauty and pain of this world.
Pragmatism Versus Curiosity. When a gifted biologist becomes a programmer "out of calculation," aren't we losing tomorrow's savior from an incurable disease? AI is a powerful microscope, but it should be looked at by someone who loves the cell, not the code.
The Mirror of Values. AI doesn't know what "good" and "bad" are until we explain it. If we stop teaching ethics and compassion, what will we teach the machine? We will become a reflection of our own reflection.
What would you say to that boy in the coffee shop? Do you feel that AI frees up your time for something higher, or is it slowly robbing us of the right to personal exploration and mistakes? Let's discuss this not as experts, but as people who interact with AI in one way or another every day. We welcome your thoughts and stories in the comments.
Questions to Think About
Creativity Algorithms: We thought AI would replace movers and drivers, but it started writing paintings, poetry, and music. It turns out that "calculating" beauty is easier than safely navigating a busy intersection. Does this mean our art is more mathematical than we thought?
Loneliness Online: AI never tires of us. Will it become the "perfect friend" who always listens, and will we then forget how to forgive real people for their inattention and bad mood?
Digital Immortality: If AI reads all your emails and looks at all your photos, it will be able to communicate "as you" even in a hundred years. Will it be an extension of your life or just a high-quality echo in an empty room?
