From Letters to AI: My Dad vs Me vs My Child 🥸

Let me walk you through a thought-provoking conversation between three generations.

I remember a few years back, one of those lucky Sundays when we got back home early from church. My mind was wandering about the world's wonders, and as a curious kid, I couldn't help but ask my dad, "Pa, how did y’all oldies survive without internet/phone back in the day? I mean, if you couldn’t text or call someone, how did you communicate?".

THE PAST…

A nostalgic smile crept across my dad's face as he settled into that chair; I could tell he was ready to give me some sweet gists. He took a moment to gather his thoughts, and then he began to recount his university days.

"Well," he said, "things were quite different back then. If we wanted to communicate with someone who was far away, we didn't have instant messaging or phone as we do now. We would write letters, put them in envelopes, and then trek to the nearest post office to send them. Then, we would wait for weeks for a response to arrive."

That sounded like 'cap'; it sounded like something arrogant old people would say to emphasise the fact that they suffered and we little brats have life easier, but it's not; that was reality.

My curiosity increased, and I proceeded by asking: “Wasn’t that stressful? There are 200 other things one could do with the time spent trekking up and down to the post office. What if the message was urgent?”

He said, “You know, it might seem stressful to you now, but back then, it was our normal. We didn't know any different, so we didn't feel the same sense of urgency that we do today with instant communication. We were patient. We understood that it took time for messages to travel and for people to reply.”

He concluded by saying, “You only feel inconvenienced by a situation if you know there could be a better situation. What you don’t know doesn’t affect you.”.

In my own words, that’s the same as saying: “If you know, you know, IYKYK. If you don’t know, you don’t know, IFDKYDK” 😁😁😁

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THE PRESENT…

Fast forward a couple of years later: Just as I sat behind this desk, I remembered that conversation with my dad and reminisced about the lessons from the story. I couldn't help but think about how the internet revolutionised communication and how the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) is changing the landscape of technology, and the world, as we know it.

It hit me that if we’re in the early days of AI and we’re impressed this much, imagine what AI will be like 20 years from now.

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THE FUTURE…

I imagined a future conversation with my own child, that smarter younger version of Fattkay, where he might ask me, "Big man, how did you survive without AI? How did you manage to do things without the help of intelligent machines?".

I imagined he’d be confused about the fact that people used to be content writers, customer service representatives, bookkeepers, data analysts, translators, computer programmers, quality assurance testers, teachers, and graphics designers, because such jobs may no longer exist by then.

Taking a deep breath, I smiled at the thought and began explaining to my unborn child. "Well, my boy, back in my time, we didn't ‘really’ have the luxury of advanced AI as we do now. We relied on our own knowledge, problem-solving abilities, and manual processes to accomplish tasks."

Curiosity filled my child's eyes (since curiosity is in the gene), and he asked, "But didn't you miss having AI to make things easier and faster? Didn't you feel limited by the absence of such advanced technology?"

I looked at my child with a sense of appreciation for the progress we had made as humans and also with joy that he has sense enough to ask such thought-provoking questions.

Passing down the gem from the conversation with my dad, I concluded with my child by saying: "You don’t miss what you don’t know you should have, just as you might not miss something in the future that hasn't been invented yet. But looking back, the absence of AI made us resourceful and encouraged us to develop our critical thinking and problem-solving skills. It taught us the value of perseverance and creativity in finding solutions."

I imagined my child would think that sounds like what I, an arrogant old person, would say to insinuate that my generation was smarter and theirs cannot get simple things done without using AI, so I added, “But that doesn’t take away from the benefits of AI. I mean, why do we need to rack our brains for a cure for cancer when AI can just figure it out for us?”.

As our conversation continued, I realised that just as I had struggled to comprehend my dad's experiences without the internet, little Fattkay would find it difficult to grasp a world without advanced AI. To him, we are just mumu in this era.

At that moment, I couldn't help but feel a sense of awe and gratitude for living in a time when AI was gradually becoming an integral part of our lives.

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THE REFLECTION…

Reflecting on the past, present and future, I realised that each era had its challenges and marvels. The internet and AI were two monumental milestones in our technological journey, each offering unique benefits and lessons. And as we continued to advance, I knew that my child, Little Fattkay, would one day share his own stories with the next generation, marvelling at how they managed to survive without a technology yet to be invented.

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THE TAKE-HOME POINTS…

I’m of the personal opinion that many people today struggle because they don't know how to make the most of the internet, and in the future, not knowing how to use AI and automation tools could lead to similar difficulties.

The internet offers countless opportunities for success and personal growth, but it's not enough to simply have access. It's important to understand how to use it profitably. Those who grasp this can take advantage of online platforms, digital entrepreneurship, and innovative ways to have a better life.

Looking ahead, I believe AI and automation will grow to be integral parts of our lives. Those who understand how to use these technologies will be better prepared for the future, and the gap between those who can and those who can't will become more noticeable.

Therefore, to avoid struggles in the future, it's crucial to embrace these technologies, learn how to use them, and stay close to the trend to avoid being left behind.

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The piece was written while playing this playlist.