On AI and TikTok

Alan Cai

October 11, 2024

Artificial intelligence and TikTok have dominated the newspaper headlines in recent years for different reasons.

The birth of AI has been among the most controversial and exciting developments in the 21st century. Its introduction to global markets and industries worldwide has boosted global labor productivity and efficiency by significant margins. As it continues to develop, AI is predicted to expand its enormous impact on world markets and our human civilization as a whole.

TikTok on the other hand has been under intense media scrutiny for its increasing control over the American populace. Specifically, concerns have been raised over TikTok’s threat to national security, ultra-addictive algorithms, and negative mental health effects on children. Earlier this year, Congress passed a bill that would effectively force a sale of the ByteDance subsidiary or level a national ban.

The rise of artificial intelligence is inevitable. At the rate companies are currently developing AI compounded by high levels of investor enthusiasm, AI is set to be a game-changer for the way businesses and enterprises operate in the future. No matter what ethics experts and politicians caution about the proliferation of AI, its widespread adoption is unstoppable as firms will quickly come to the realization that they must implement it to stay competitive. However, given the powerful and evolving nature of AI, the technology will undoubtedly displace many professions. Large language models such as ChatGPT are already removing the necessity for many white-collar creativity-oriented jobs. As AI expands into the service and manufacturing sectors, it is conceivable that the concept of employment itself will be no longer relevant.

As humans are relieved of the employment opportunities that occupy the majority of their lives, there must be certain alternative manners by which peoples’ time can be allocated. While the pursuit of trivial scientific discovery, the exploration of philosophy, the practice of the arts, the enhancement of athletics, and the growth of literature will be new venues where previously inaccessible talent could be unlocked, the vast majority of individuals will find most of their waking hours occupied by leisure activities.

That’s where TikTok comes in. As dystopian as it may seem, a world in which people navigate their lives without the pressure of working or even driving will result in much free time for leisure. Leisure must be free for individuals to allocate toward any activity they please; for heavily restrictive diversion is not diversion at all. TikTok is one of those areas where people can derive enjoyment. While regulation is necessary for both TikTok and artificial intelligence, such laws cannot restrict certain fundamental liberties that may be ever more pertinent in the years to come.

In order to best brace humanity for the technological revolutions to come, we must allow them to be accessible for the people to enjoy and take and advantage of.