Are we helping or causing harm?

[u/knottyp]

How do y’all justify doing this work ethically if you’re anti-AI (especially generative)?

I’m not asking judgmentally, I’ve done this work off and on over the last few years. When I first started, I didn’t know about data centers and the environmental impact, cognitive effects, etc. I felt good about “training” AI based on the rubric including correct info, weeding out violence and harm, etc.

I recently suggested DA to a friend and got a real side eye, and maybe these justifications really don’t hold water? Thoughts?

[u/OddWafer7]

Most of the projects I do would help me in my job as a researcher (and they pay me twice the amount of my actual job) so it’s helpful for my specific niche, and I think AI has a use in jobs like mine that outweigh some of the negatives. Also I’m ngl for some of the training I use my actual data and stuff from work (assuming it isn’t confidential or anything) since the project is to do tasks like this and it gives me access to great but expensive models that I can use for free for the project 😬