Human 'common sense' remains crucial amid rise of AI, Dubai summit hears

Henrik von Scheel says over-reliance on artificial intelligence could prevent personal development

AI use is becoming increasingly common among all generations. Getty Images

Global experts at a Dubai summit examining the rapid rise of artificial intelligence have called on future generations not to lose sight of the value of common sense when harnessing advanced technology - and to never be afraid to fail.

Professor Henrik von Scheel, co-founder of Strategic Intelligence, the company that provides the future trends reports to the World Economic Forum, cautioned against an over-reliance on AI at the Futurists X Summit on Monday.

Large language models like ChatGPT are making it easier for young people to get answers in seconds but there are concerns among educators and experts that AI tools could limit critical thinking and make users risk averse.

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Prof von Scheel illustrated this by highlighting how important acknowledging failure is in the learning process, yet the option of using an AI tool to answer questions can remove the risk of ever being wrong – which is damaging for young people hoping to learn and improve.

“My obsession is with all my students. You have to fail … If you don’t fail, you don’t learn,” said Prof von Scheel, who is an honorary professor at the Arthur Lok Jack Global School of Business in Trinidad and Tobago.

“The industry recognises me but what they don’t see are all the failed attempts that came before it. That success only happened because I learnt from those failures.”

The Securing Our Digital World with Next Generation Technology panel session at the Futurists X Summit. Photo: Futurists X Summit

Adding a human touch

Other experts at the summit said there needs to be a balance between AI tools and human judgement. Johan Gerber, executive vice president of security solutions at MasterCard, said that human common sense will help people stay ahead of AI.

He cited the case of Stanislav Petrov, a Soviet lieutenant credited with preventing a potential nuclear conflict in 1983 when he chose not to follow radar data that suggested an incoming attack.

“That sense-making component is where we as humans will always have an advantage,” Mr Gerber said. “Even when the data says a certain thing, the common-sense pieces and the contextual information may actually be our saviour.”

He said he was a firm believer in “human-augmented intelligence”, when AI gives the data but it is a person who interprets it. He also touched on cybersecurity, saying that AI was driving threats and opportunities in the field.

“There's a concept of red teams and blue teams. Red teams are the ones trying to attack you, and blue teams are the ones trying to defend you.

“And there's several platforms out there who host red team competitions, where they allow people to ‘come and attack me as a company’. They then try to figure out their defences or where the weaknesses are … and people pay for that.”

Professor Brian Cox speaks via live stream at the Futurists X Summit. Photo: Futurists X Summit

Quantum computing challenges

The summit also focused on quantum computing; technology that can crunch large sets of data at high speed, potentially providing breakthroughs in fields such as medicine, cybersecurity and astrophysics.

Steve Suarez, founder and chief executive of HorizonX Consulting, said US authorities are already developing new algorithms to help defend against the risks posed by quantum computers.

He said that when these machines are powerful enough they will be able to break today’s common encryption methods, which protect sensitive data such as bank accounts and government records. “It’s not a matter of if … it has already been shown in theory,” said Mr Suarez.

He warned that hackers are already saving stolen data hoping to one day unlock it when quantum technology becomes strong enough, a tactic known as “harvest now, decrypt later”. He said quantum computing could become mainstream soon, possibly within the next decade.

“Quantum is like a marathon. You can’t just show up on the day and start running … you need to prepare in advance. This is a technology you do not want to be left behind on,” he said.

Unlocking the universe’s computing power

Brian Cox, professor of particle physics at the University of Manchester, told the summit about the pros of quantum systems, including how it could tap into the “fundamental power of nature itself”.

“According to our modern picture of physics, it's a mind-numbing accounting problem,” he said. “Quantum computers allow us to access a very small piece of that power, but it's enough to allow us to do calculations in moments that would take longer than the current age of the universe to perform using any conceivable classic computer … and that's the power of quantum computing.”