Adam Becker, an accomplished science and technology reporter, has come out with a challenging new book, More Everything Forever, published by Basic Books. The price of the book is $32. It offers a deeply informative and well-fact-checked look at the limits of AI and a counterpoint to the utopian, dystopian, and sometimes totally hubristic futures promised by today’s tech billionaires.
In “More Everything Forever,” Becker argues that the belief in AI as a transformative force that will solve humanity’s problems is fundamentally flawed. He dispels the fantasy that advanced technology will serve as a magic solution, stating, “Nothing is coming to save us. There’s no genie inside a computer that will grant us three wishes.” This assertion underscores the central theme of the book: that technology cannot resolve the complex political and social issues facing society today.
The author dives more deeply into the limitations of AI, stressing that an excessive dependence on technology can have fatal impacts. Becker underscores how training AI models on the millions of webpages available can accidentally create disjointed information. There’s the problem of having very complex data driving these racial equity arguments. He flags a pretty big misuse of ChatGPT. One example of the fare produced by the bot — it inaccurately insisted that the Great Wall of China was the only manmade structure visible from Spain — showcases how easily AI can mislead.
Becker’s narrative explores how the utopian visions espoused by some tech leaders are not just impractical, but imbued with underlying societal issues such as racism, sexism, and “endless capitalism of the most brutal sort.” By deeply questioning these biases, he invites the reader to rethink what a future ruled by AI really means.
The book counters the prevailing narrative that AI will radically change how we live our everyday lives. Perhaps most importantly, it draws attention to the urgent need for a more sophisticated understanding of technology’s role in society. Becker’s engaging writing style and thorough research make “More Everything Forever” an essential read for those interested in technology’s impact on human existence.
More Everything Forever is for sale from Bookshop.org, which supports local bookstores and allows Science News to serve as an affiliate of this bookstore network. We hope it will help all readers to soberly grapple with the promises and pitfalls of AI. It’s the smart approach to furthering a more informed national discussion about how technology can positively shape our society.
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