I want to start by saying I generally feel as if AI was created with good intentions and was meant to be a useful tool. I also am on the side to where AI generated images and “artwork” is stealing art from real artists and photos from real people and that is damaging in those regards for many obvious reasons. And much of the anger and outcry against AI in a negative sense I can understand and question a lot of those aspects of AI.

That being said I also utilize AI as a tool in various ways and I see the benefits. A big thing that I like about it is the amount of information it provides allows me to search things or ask things on one platform as opposed to googling or searching the web for stuff. Aside from that I just use it as a calculator, thesaurus, asking it for specific answers or information, and copy and pasting something I wrote but saying “can you put this in bullet form”. I find that it is really useful for my office job for those things as well where I need like a quick edit, formatting a document or email to be professional sounding, etc.

I know some people may say this is using AI as a crutch perhaps, but I would also argue that AI has also taught me how to do things as it often provides explanations. I’ve grown my vocabulary by using it like a thesaurus, and I have utilized it at times as a personal guide by asking for solutions for specific personal issues and in return I’ve gotten feedback as well as generally good advice that I can use if said problem were to come up again. Also I like being able to refer back to previous history and using it as a reference.

I know that “feeling” like it can be a positive and useful tool is just my personal belief and doesn’t negate others feelings. I believe there is a way to use AI ethically but I also understand that AI can be utilized in unethical ways as well. I’m open to hearing all opinions and perspectives as this has been a really interesting and conflicting experience.