I try to keep the “behind the scenes stuff” of managing my blog away from you because, let’s face it, you probably don’t care. Honestly, most of the time I DON’T CARE because it’s either tedious or frustrating … and now the recent update of WordPress (the platform that I, and millions like me, use to blog) has made it almost pointless because they have officially given over control to AI, at least the start of it handing over control. Here’s what I woke up to late last week after updating my website (highlight added for emphasis):
Normally, I pay almost no attention to updates. They come; they go. Who cares? But this time I stopped to peruse it for some reason and my heart literally sank when I read: “WordPress 7.0 introduces the foundation for AI across the platform,” which I read to mean: “stop thinking for yourself; your AI-overlords are here.”
If you’re unaware, I’ve had this blog since about 2009. It’s gone through many iterations. And I’ve made dozens of huge mistakes! I’ve lost large portions of my blog content because I didn’t know how to do the “behind the scenes” stuff properly, tried to do it all myself, and eventually broke my blog beyond repair. I’ve tried to follow trends, posting lots of content daily, focusing on social media too much, and lot more that doesn’t matter right now.
The important point is that all of it, both the good and the bad, were all my doing. They were MY choices and MY mistakes and MY triumphs. That’s all going to change whether you or I like it or not. Because, while AI-integration is currently “optional,” I’m afraid it won’t stay that way (highlight added for emphasis):
Because that’s how these things always go, isn’t it? They creep in slowly, and before you know it, it’s everywhere. For example, whenever I open up Google (or these days my Brave browser) and ask a question, I’m instantly offered an AI-generated response. It’s often useful, or appears to be, but how can I truly trust what it’s telling me? These days, I rarely scroll down to look at what the website links below the AI-generated answer might say.
AI is Everywhere
I used Microsoft Word often, but I can’t seem to get away from their Copilot integration, which is Microsoft’s AI-powered chatbot that’s more annoying than useful. I’m not even sure what it’s purpose is most times. I do, however, use PowerPoint regularly for making the featured images on this blog, and it’s always trying to get me to enhance the images in some way, probably through the use of AI. Why?
My phone is somehow AI-powered now. Again, what’s the point, aside from being a selling point?
Those are just a few examples of AI in my own life. But it’s all over the place now. They’re putting AI in war machines, like drones, and I’m sure the Terminator-style robot army is coming soon enough. I’ve read that the monster wolf robots which Japan has deployed to deter bear attacks will soon be AI-integrated. (That’s all we need are AI-powered wolves.) AI is in surveillance cameras, medical diagnostics, used for all sorts of business decisions, and in the classroom, to name a few big additions.
Don’t get me wrong, I want to believe that AI can be useful in many ways, and it can be. For example, when I wrote my book, Why We Prepare, I used AI to help me with research, outlining, editing, and more. It was a real time-saver. The difference is that it was MY choice to use AI.
Like I said, AI is literally everywhere now. But the one place where I felt like I still had true control was my blog. And that’s going to change because, over time, AI will slowly infiltrate the workspace. It’ll start out benign enough. It will be helpful by offering simple suggestions, point out spelling mistakes, and tell me I can “reach 7.6% more readership by allowing AI to do X” … I made that last part up, but it sounds plausible.
Here’s where it even got me…
Case in Point (and how I caved)
AI recommended, and then offered, to make me a chatbot for my website. The following conversation is completely from my made-up (and certainly exaggerated) memories about what happened the other day:
AI said, “Want a chatbot? They’re great. Everybody’s got one.”
I thought, “I’ve seen those. They’re on my bank’s website and places like that.”
AI said, “It’ll totally help your readers find stuff easier.”
I said, “Yeah, there is a lot here that people are probably missing.” I hesitate. “But what’s the catch?”
AI replied, “There’s no catch. Well, you’re going to pay a bit when people use it, but you’ll probably sell an extra book or two to pay for usage each month. Besides, it’s about the readers’, right? And we’ll get it done in no time!”
“Ugh. Okay. You’re probably right. Let’s do it!”
There’s now a chatbot on my website. It’s little black and red circle in the bottom right corner. Go ahead, give it a try. I’ve experimented with it, and it’s not bad. There’s some tweaking left to do at some point, but my eyes hurt and I don’t currently care anymore.
Anyway, you can ask it a question about preparedness, and it’ll probably steer you toward something on my website that will help. If it really can’t find an answer, it will tell you that too.
Granted, the chatbot sometimes thinks it knows more than it really does right now, or at least, that my website can answer more of your detailed questions, so just be aware that’s probably not the case. But it’s a good starting point to find answers.
And the chatbot feature turns out to be too much of a pain, I’ll remove it … assuming my AI-overlords will let me.
Back to Reality
Eventually, AI will offer to be “me” in small ways. It’ll tell me that it can respond to comments for me. (There are already AI solutions that will auto-respond to emails in a more “intelligent” way than simple autoresponders.) It will tell me that it can write blog posts for me, which would admittedly be nice sometimes. I’d imagine AI will recommend how to schedule content for maximum engagement, but it will have to take over my social media to make that happen. And I’ll say yes because that sounds easier, too. Besides, I don’t want to get left behind because everybody is doing it!
My guess is that years from now, you’ll be interacting with a digital version of me. Perhaps I will have even moved on to new adventures, but you won’t know any different. This blog will still be “me” because AI knows all about me through thousands of blog posts and dozens of books I’ve written, and it will be able to synthesize that content into the best version of me. (Worse, the cameras around my home, in vehicles, and certainly on my phone will keep the AI updated on my “progress” as a prepper. Yikes!)
Is that synthesis good? I don’t know. Maybe it will be better for you, the reader, because you won’t get my ramblings, my mistakes, or my peculiarities.
But you also won’t get the genuine me. You won’t get the real human behind the keyboard that AI could never truly replicate. Because AI isn’t human. It can never be. And that’s what will be missing as we dive deeper into the AI-generated rabbit hole none of can seem to escape – the human connection.
Now, go talk to my chatbot. 🙂
