Why Obsessing Over AI Today Blinds Us to the Bigger Picture

AI is the train that never stops

Photo by Brian McGowan

The Gist

• I. The Hogwarts Express is a window to the past: Visiting the Hogwarts Express in Scotland made me realize relics from the past can make us appreciate the progress we often take for granted today.
• II. The present is an invisible magical envelope: We overlook the wonders of modern technology because we forget how “magical” our present is compared to the past.
• III. The puzzle that shapes and shifts the future: Trying to understand AI is challenging because it resists static definitions, much like past tech.
• IV. The evergreen story of our lives: It’s okay not to fully grasp AI; embracing this ongoing change is an essential part of the human experience.

I. The Hogwarts Express is a window to the past

On the second day of our two-week-long summer journey through Scotland, after zigzagging for hours through the towering, mist-cloaked peaks of Glencoe Valley, we arrived at Fort William, a quiet town cradled by the shimmering shores of Loch Linnhe.

The air was damp and carried the briny scent of the sea, mingling with the earthy aroma of wet Scots pine and moss. I looked down…