A.I. and You

The Geometric Landscape by Lorenz Stoer (1567)

In his Substack, “A.I. is tearing through the fabric of everything that actually means something to us,” Alistair Alexander shared his neighbor Monika Jiang’s question, “What is your relationship to A.I.?”

My first response was personal: I can get hostile when I interact with A.I.s (i.e., when a robot reports that my insurance won’t pay for blood tests). This is a problem, since 1)the hostility only reaches me; and 2) researching, checking my bank account or finding a plumber increasingly means interacting with A.I.s.

The more I interact with screens and robots, the more my curiosity about inner truths, other people and wildlife becomes harder to hold. I lose my patience and sense of humor. I focus on how much in the world does not work. I can’t see the point of life.

Psychiatrist Keith Sakat has seen 12 people hospitalized this year after they lost touch with reality…because of A.I.

I also think about A.I.s’ global implications. Every A.I. (and Internet) request involves water, extractions, smelting, fossil fuels, intercontinental shipping, electromagnetic radiation emissions, laborers working in slavery or near-slavery conditions, toxic waste, wildlife habitat losses, fire hazards—and much more. The invisibility of these issues does not stop them.

On July 23, 2025, President Trump declared that “artificial intelligence will play a critical role in how Americans of all ages learn new skills, consume information, and navigate their daily lives.” In Winning the Race, America’s AI Plan, The White House envisions that the FCC will evaluate whether state AI regulations interfere with the agency’s ability to carry out its obligations outlined in the Communications Act of 1934. Already, the FCC has issued rulings regarding AI-generated robocalls and political advertising.

None of this stops translators, political analysts and teachers I know from admiring A.I. or engaging it. Since the release of ChatGPT, researchers across many disciplines now use AI-generated text to help them write papers.

I remind myself that I live in a biosphere. Life evolves from cycles of heating and cooling and drying and moistening. Water cycles and nutrient-dense soil provide.

SOME CONSEQUENCES

J.P. Hill writes, “A.I. isn’t curing isolation, it’s driving us crazy.”

An expert predicts that when A.I-generated data is used as evidence, “it’s ‘frighteningly likely’ that many US courts will overlook AI errors.”

In Texas, where A.I. data centers daily use 463 million gallons of water, residents are told to take shorter showers.

Researchers explain that A.I. prohibits sustainability. Two design strategies impose A.I. use in personal and professional contexts, make it harder to resist using A.I., and will inevitably lead to environmental harms. The researchers also discuss opportunities for regulating A.I.

A.I.’s energy-hungry algorithms fuel the climate crisis.

Since digitalization demands minerals like cobalt, nickel and manganese, and earth-based supplies are harder to access, manufacturers now want to mine the ocean floor, despite unknown impacts on biodiversity and climate. President Trump recently issued an executive order to fast-track U.S. deep sea mining.

Andrew Nikiforuk has written an excellent overview: AI Demands to be Fed. We’re All Servers Now.

I keep realizing that reducing dependence on computers and A.I. requires keeping questions about them alive.

Keeping the biosphere alive might start with revering it, saying thanks for the water, food, soil and air that sustain us.

ENCOURAGING NEWS

Tuscon rejected an Amazon data center.

A batch of people suggested ways to break free from your phone.

A NYC neighborhood created a community space to help tenants, to create new childcare networks, and more.

On 10 February, representatives 11 EU Member States signed the European Bioeconomy Cluster Alliance, an agreement to move away from using fossil fuels, cement and other materials, such as plastics.

PLEASE SHARE

What’s your relationship to A.I.? How does it affect YOU? Have you found ways to reduce your use of it?