One of AI’s most pernicious capabilities is its capacity to manipulate content to ensnare the learner’s attention. Digital engagement is already a finely tuned science, exploiting vast data troves to construct user profiles and predict behavior. As exemplified by “doomscrolling”, social media platforms deploy infinite scrolling and autoplay to hijack attention.
Traditionally, attention was a resource an individual owned and voluntarily relinquished. The advent of social media and smartphones has revealed a less benign reality. Platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok are notorious for manipulating information to capture and hold attention against users’ will.
It is no accident that internet platforms are addictive—deliberate design choices, known as “dark patterns,” are made to maximize user engagement.
The ’Sacklerization’ of Attention
The MIT Technology Review has gone further, coining the term “Addiction Intelligence” and warning of its impending dominance. By interacting with social media, users unwittingly program platforms to more effectively capture their attention. Coupled with AI, this trend heralds a future where attention is a scarce commodity, manipulated on an unprecedented scale. AI can dynamically prioritize content to reinforce engagement, algorithmically assembling an endless stream of stimuli.
Robert Mahari
Read the source article for 'Additive Intelligence from the MIT Technology Review
Understanding the impact Social Media Platforms have had on the generations ahead of AI.
Check out Project Liberty, who's focus is personal management in the digital age.
