The author also raises concerns about the potential impact of AI on our understanding of the past. Companies like Google and Apple are using AI to package these altered photos into powerful narratives about our lives, effectively outsourcing the curation of our memories to corporate algorithms. The author suggests that while these flawless AI photos may be appealing in the moment, they could be missing the texture and imperfections that make memories real, potentially altering our recall of events.
Key takeaways:
- Google's latest Pixel phones come with new generative-AI photo-editing tools that allow users to easily perfect their photos, potentially altering small details from their lives.
- Our camera rolls serve as a personal archive and diary, helping us make sense of the past. However, the ability to easily edit and perfect these photos could distort our recollection of events.
- Google Photos and Apple are using AI to package these altered photos into short, emotionally powerful narratives about our lives, effectively outsourcing the curation of our memories to corporate algorithms.
- While these AI tools won't erase our memories or corrupt our sense of self, the camera roll of the future could lack the small imperfections that allow us to recall certain moments as they really happened, potentially creating a kind of virtual reality.