Harold Jarche10h ago
Avi Lewis

1/ The Liberal government might as well have called its AI strategy “All in for AI”.

This is a document that is heavy on hype, but light on the right guardrails that we need to protect people – and to ensure that the benefits of the technology don’t just flow to a handful of tech giants and investors.

It proposes a massive boost to business adoption of AI, with no concern for the consequences this will have for workers, especially young workers who are already watching careers vanish before their eyes.

This government is imposing a world-changing technology on all of us without any public debate. Instead of putting in place strong regulations to safeguard workers, youth, privacy, and our water and energy supply, they prefer to “move fast and break things” as the Silicon Valley motto goes.

#cdnpoli #NDP #AI

6:05pmWeb
Show threadAvi Lewis11h ago

2/ That’s why before rushing ahead, with no brakes, we need a robust regulatory framework. Every other industry in this country, from forestry to banking, is regulated. Yet somehow, when it comes to generative AI that is controlled by MAGA-aligned billionaires, the usual rules don’t apply.

New Democrats support the development of cutting edge technology. For AI, that looks like responsible machine learning with small, contained datasets and targeted applications.

We’re calling for a humans-first AI strategy. One that protects Canadian jobs, data and natural resources. Not a strategy that mimics the worst tendencies of AI chatbots: hallucinating benefits and flattering big tech CEOs by telling them exactly what they want to hear.

#cdnpoli #NDP #AI

Show threadMr.Mark "The Sharpie King"11h ago
@avilewis
AI is Authoritarian Infrastructure
Show threadMichael Richardson 🇨🇦11h ago
@avilewis Please stop calling it AI. It's Machine Learning, which includes LLMs as a subset. And the subset of that: the plagiarism machines.
Show threadHuman 350010h ago

It's worse than that @mcr314. So much "AI" is just a computer program doing the same things as they did in the 1960s.

The first thing the government needs to do is explain what it means. Of course, the big push when most companies say AI right now means a plan to eliminate human workers replacing them with low quality and low accuracy substitute computer programs which is right in the wheel house of this conservative government we didn't elect.

@avilewis

Show threadrhtunstall11h ago

@avilewis
I just received a water restriction notice for the #MetroVancouver area.

I am now prohibited from even filling a bird bath yet Mark Carney is currently pushing for water guzzling AI Data Centers in Vancouver.

With climate warming, our community also deals with brownouts every summer. Where are Carney and #Telus going to get the power and water to run these unnecessary, resource heavy monstrosities?

#burnaby #bcpoli #bcndp #ndp #cdnpoli #AI

Show threadCome On Giant Asteroid!11h ago

@avilewis

Keep surrendering, #Carney.

Show threadfelix9h ago

@avilewis It's coming regardless of whether Carney "imposes" it: as of now, writing code is much much faster than it used to be. Canadian companies&workers do need access to that or they'll be left behind.

But the Canadian govt needs to ensure:
* the new data centers don't destroy the environment (renewable power, water usage)
* there's lots of competition among AI providers, including Canadian options
* we tax AI "labour" to support transitioning workers as the economy reshapes

#cdnpoli

Show threadTall Simon8h ago

@avilewis I'm more than happy to sign my Waterloo Ph.D. in Computer Science behind my conclusion that the LLM/AI pushed by Silicon Valley

- is never going to fulfill its promises,
- is a colossal and dangerous waste of time, intellectual, financial and ecological resources,
- serves, like surveillance advertising, a false goal in the name of data collection, and
- serves to strip power and autonomy from users of computers, thin as that is already, and sovereignty from nations.

Minister Solomon has no credentials in the field, and is a puppet because of it.

Forget "guardrails". The AI companies, as with the social media companies, are generating material for us and have to be held criminally liable where it crosses legal lines. Are they monetizing illegal material by advertising beside it, or is their masthead over it? Press charges, just like you would an old-fashioned print newspaper. Is it legal, medical or financial advice but without credentials? Press charges!

Show threadmintiefresh 🇨🇦🇻🇳7h ago

@avilewis

Keep fighting the good fight.