The Reverse-Centaur's Guide to Criticizing AI (05 Dec 2025)
6 days ago
- #Labor Rights
- #Tech Monopolies
- #AI Criticism
- Cory Doctorow discusses the concept of 'reverse centaurs' in AI, where humans serve as appendages to machines, exemplified by Amazon delivery drivers monitored by AI.
- He critiques the AI bubble, arguing that tech companies hype AI to maintain growth stock valuations, despite AI's inability to fully replace human jobs.
- Doctorow highlights the dangers of AI in accountability sinks, where humans take the blame for AI mistakes, as seen in radiology and coding.
- He emphasizes that AI-generated art lacks the intentionality of human creativity, calling it 'eerie' and diluted in communicative density.
- Doctorow opposes expanding copyright to cover AI training, warning it would benefit media monopolies over artists, and praises the US Copyright Office's stance against copyrighting AI-generated works.
- He advocates for sectoral bargaining, like the Writers Guild's approach, to protect workers from AI-driven job losses.
- Doctorow concludes that the AI bubble will burst, leaving behind useful open-source tools but also significant economic and social damage.