Future Update: Is technology an 'existential threat' to humanity?

• A group of tech experts are fighting for legislation and regulation of social media platforms such as Google and Twitter.
• 'We're pointing the most powerful supercomputers in the world at our brains to suck the attention out of it,' says ex-Googler Tristan Harris.
• Shaping people's attention and thoughts may lead to shaping society and culture.

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In regard to technology, have we gone too far already and just not know it? Most people own a smartphone nowadays and services like email are almost retro considering all the new options for social interaction. I mean why not just use Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram or Facebook Messenger?

I mean, who even uses the cellular SMS service these days? I remember when I used to pay a ton of cash for SMS usage. These days its all on messenger, discord or telegram.

I don't even consider myself state of the art in regard to common practices in using social media. I'll be the first to admit that I've already fallen behind in the usage of these services.

When I recently read a recent article entitled 'Ex-Google employee calls tech addiction an ‘existential threat' and calls for regulation' published by CNBC, I sort of connected with the point that our addiction to technology as a species has really transformed society in ways we may not be aware of or even completely understand.

Let me give you a few examples.

Former Google employee Tristan Harris said large tech companies have a "moral responsibility" when it comes to shaping billions of people's attention — one he believes they are abusing in favor of profits.

"We're pointing the most powerful supercomputers in the world at our brains to suck the attention out of it," Harris, who once worked as a design ethicist at Google, told CNBC. "Then if that stock price has to keep going up I have to actually point it at your kids."

This is a strong point for starters, is morality even a factor in this consumer driven corporate stock economy we've built? Doesn't it all just come down to the share price? Companies are looking to grab additional profits and don't really care where they come from.

Another point that I'd like to make is that has any of this technology been studied in any real way before rolling it out to the masses in regard to its potential to change society in potentially negative ways. Have you noticed the hordes of people on the subway or bus and where their attention is focused. Are they staring at a screen? Is anybody reading a newspaper or striking up a conversation? No, I thought not.

"I actually genuinely view this as an existential threat," said Harris. "When you're shaping people's attention you're shaping their thoughts. Their thoughts precede action, and you're really shaping society and culture. ... There's an entire set of consequences when you shape people's attention through design."

Attention is important. The question is, what are people paying attention to? What messages are being sent? It seems that this is a good point above. Attention shapes thoughts and thoughts result in action. What a powerful tool indeed! Again this power can be used for good or evil and simply depends on the agenda at hand.

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"Everybody in your audience knows [about the problem] because they're addicted to their phones and concerned about some of the fallout," Jim Steyer, CEO of Common Sense Media, told CNBC.

Why are humans drawn to shiny screens more than the company of other humans? Why would they prefer to chat with people in the cloud over talking with the people around them? Well, maybe its human nature. It's the simplest answer and often times the simple answer is the most correct one.

"Most of us are interacting with these things every day and have no idea," Harris said of bots. "If researchers can figure this out, then why can't Twitter? Because their stock prices depend on them telling Wall Street, 'We've got this many users.'"

So we are focusing solely on active users without any thought to whether what we are doing is morally, ethically or humanely right. Do we care if its wrong or right? No, of course we don't. Remember, pay attention we care about viewers, we care about users, we don't care about anything else!

A spokesperson for Twitter pointed to a blog post the company wrote last month that said, "We recognize that Twitter is an important part of a larger ecosystem of how news and information spreads online, and that we have a responsibility to support external programs that empower our users, connecting them with resources to give them control over their online experience."

So what do you think about all of this? Are our world's supercomputers being used to hold the attention of the masses?

Although, I recognize that there may not be anything we can do about this but is this right from a moral standpoint? Do you see things just getting more sensational from here? What are companies willing to do to get your attention?

I'd love to hear your thoughts and opinions on this topic...

Thanks for reading @Techblogger.

Source:

Ex-Google employee calls tech addiction an ‘existential threat' and calls for regulation - CNBC

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CNBC