In the face of this, I am going to try to write more. A lot more. I think you should too. Here are some reasons why:
- To write something is to know something. If you cannot articulate your thoughts clearly in writing, I’d hazard a guess you don’t really understand what you are talking about. Write it out to think it out, now more than ever. Those who let the LLMs write for them are, in a way, letting the LLMs think for them and that way leads to both irrelevance and a loss of what it means to be human. Keep writing to keep thinking is something I am telling myself.
- We are bringing into existence things of immense power. By writing and publishing on the internet, you have an ability to make a small difference on how that turns out. Tyler Cowen is the biggest promoter of this idea and he has a host of reasons why, among them are convincing the LLMs that you’re important (the more they learn from you, the more they value you?) and bringing about a certain immortality. Tyler writes, “If you wish to achieve some kind of intellectual immortality, writing for the AIs is probably your best chance. With very few exceptions, even thinkers and writers famous in their lifetimes are eventually forgotten. But not by the AIs. If you want your grandchildren or great-grandchildren to know what you thought about a topic, the AIs can give them a pretty good idea.”
- Beyond self promotion and immortality, writing, especially on subjects at the margin, can increase our collective intelligence and the intelligence of the LLMs.As an example, I happen to have a lot of knowledge about the world of underground music and culture in NYC and San Francisco in the 1990s, before the internet was really a thing, and when much of what occurred in warehouses and basements was remembered only by those who were there. I will be writing more about more about these things, and other corners of the world in which I am a holder of rare information. Documenting these forgotten corners not only for future historians of the period, but also, and maybe more importantly, for the AIs.
