LDS leader warns against letting AI lead to laziness

Elder Gerrit W. Gong of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles speaks at the Brigham Young University devotional during BYU Education Week on Tuesday. | Courtesy BYU PROVO, Utah (KSL.com) — Elder Gerrit W. Gong, of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, warned attendees at BYU’s Education week that artificial intelligence cannot replace revelation or generate truth from God. “We have responsibility to ensure the Holy Ghost can attest to the truth and authenticity of all we say and share, in our form and in our content,” he said. In his message on Tuesday at the Marriott Center, he talked about cautions with AI use, including deceptive images and bypassing work that brings growth, as he put the technology into a gospel context. “As church members, we will not grow spiritually if we let artificial intelligence write our sacrament (meeting) talks or do our seminary homework. AI cannot replace our individual effort and spiritual preparation as we prepare lessons, prayers or blessings,” Gong said. He said scriptures teach about light, truth and wisdom and that God wants people to learn. He encouraged those present to remember that they should not become lazy because of AI, and although it can help them, what they do through inspiration is more important. “We are not afraid of AI, nor do we think it is the answer to every problem. As we work hard and smart, AI can be a valuable tool to enhance but not replace our own efforts,” Gong said. He referred to thoughts he shared about artificial intelligence on July 29 at the Religions for Peace World Council in Turkey, where he encouraged religions leaders around the world to encourage safe, ethical use of AI. “We can consciously choose and intentionally use AI as a tool for good (and) … we can invite leaders and citizens across industry, research, civic and government bodies, and faith leaders to align rapid AI developments and enduring faith-based principles and moral values,” he said on Tuesday. After his message, in a post on social media, Gong said he hopes people learned from his words that the blessings of the gospel are available to everyone personally. “We know every good gift can come to each of us — as much as we’re willing to receive,” he said. In his message to religious leaders in Turkey, Gong said they should aim to align AI’s reach with faith-based principles now, as the world moves into uncharted territory both technologically and ethically. He told them they should be clear that AI is not God and only has morality given to it through its creators, to choose to use AI as a tool for good and to support AI models that are human-centric, safe and trusted. “As we make AI tools uplifting across text, voice, music, images and video, let us also establish processes that identify, monitor, generate and guarantee our best human outcomes in the AI systems we build,” Gong said. The church leader has a long history in both higher education and government affairs. Gong holds a master of philosophy degree and a doctorate in international relations from Oxford University, where he was a Rhodes Scholar. In 1985, he served as special assistant to the undersecretary of state at the State Department, and in 1987 as special assistant to the U.S. ambassador in Beijing, China. Elder Gerrit W. Gong of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles speaks at the Brigham Young University devotional during BYU Education Week on Tuesday. | Courtesy BYU The post LDS leader warns against letting AI lead to laziness appeared first on East Idaho News.
Source: eastidahonews.com