#6 The world isn’t ready for AI!
What happens when the machines move faster than we do?
20 June 2025
It all started with some weird, uncanny images.
I think back to my first real hands-on experience with AI: Christmas 2022, when I generated a series of vaguely disturbing cards for my friends & family.
Don’t remember that two-headed sacrificial goat at the nativity…
Just 2.5 years later, the pace of development has been bonkers. We’re now living in the Post-Truth Age, where AI videos are almost indistinguishable from real life. These days, I catch myself double-checking the publication date on anything I read or watch – if it’s pre-2022, I can relax and assume it was probably made by an actual person.
AI might still feel like a niche obsession to some, but by 2026, it’s predicted that 90% of online content will be machine-made, not human. That’s staggering, considering this tech barely existed a couple of years ago.
As someone who assembles words for a living, it’s been both exciting and terrifying to watch this unfold. On one hand, I’m constantly amazed by how magical these tools can feel. But on the other, it’s devalued the words themselves. People now assume you can just press a button and job done.
I’m a bit of an obsessive, so I keep tabs on every angle in the AI debate. I land somewhere between the total hype machine and the hardened sceptic. Some people are fully evangelising the tools, convinced they’re going to change absolutely everything. Others think it’s all smoke and mirrors, totally overhyped, and destined to fizzle.
I’m somewhere in the middle. What these tools can do is incredible — but there are plenty of drawbacks to be aware of too. Let’s go over some of them…
What’s wrong with this robot?
AI is a slippery bastard.
It gives you very confident, plausible-sounding answers that pull you in all sorts of bad directions. It sounds right — even when it’s totally wrong. It’s untrustworthy in ways that are hard to spot (unless you already know what you’re talking about).
It’s a total yes-man.
Your own personal sycophant in your pocket. It flatters you endlessly, gives unearned encouragement, and says yes to every questionable idea like you’re some sort of genius. It doesn’t push back or challenge you, and that’s dangerous.
Then there’s the outsourcing of your thinking.
It’s far too easy to get a response that’s “good enough” — so you run with it. With no analysis or deeper reflection, you lose the hard-won skill of figuring things out properly. We’ve sort of come full circle: We used to tell machines what to do. Now they tell us.
Everything’s becoming the same.
AI takes what’s specific and makes it general. Humans are spiky creatures — we’ve got quirks, edges, contradictions – and AI smooths all of that out into some flavourless, generic paste. Now with the same tools in everybody’s hands, things are all starting to look and sound the same.
At the end of the day, it’s a predictive text engine on steroids.
It blends together everything that’s ever been said in human history and gives you a safe, medium-strength approximation.
All of this is why expertise still matters. Some people think, “Great! I don’t need to learn anything anymore — the AI will just do it.” But that’s backwards.
Whenever you’re working with these tools, you need to maintain a strong vision — a clear sense of what you’re aiming for, and the judgment to know when it’s bullshitting you.
It’s helpful to think of chatbots as calculators, but for words. When calculators were invented, we didn’t stop learning maths. We just outsourced the big calculations so we could tackle bigger problems. If we use these new tools in the right way, we can aim higher.
But it’s also worth bearing in mind: mental maths skills have gone downhill. Now we can take the shortcut, we don’t have to do the work anymore. You can already see the same thing happening with AI – except this time, the consequences might be bigger.
Qualities that matter more than ever
So, what does it take to stand out in the AI era? As mentioned above, technical know-how is still crucial, but it’s not enough. This is what the experts say we need to stay future-proof:
- Emotional intelligence: The ability to empathise, build trust, and navigate tricky social dynamics.
- Collaboration & communication: Working across disciplines, motivating teams, and translating complex ideas into actionable plans.
- Creativity & storytelling: Dreaming up new ideas, coming up with compelling narratives, and seeing connections where others see chaos.
- Critical thinking & judgement: Sifting through information, spotting bias, and making nuanced decisions – something AI still struggles with.
- Adaptability: Embracing change, learning new tools, and staying curious as the world evolves.
When I look at this list, I think – AI or not – these would be nice qualities to have anyway! This is what school should really be focusing on. Not abandoning core subjects, but using them to foster these other “soft” skills (which, let’s be honest, are anything but soft – they’re super hard to learn).
Beyond that, a working knowledge of AI itself – how to prompt it, interpret its output, and use it as a collaborator – has quickly become a baseline requirement at lots of companies. Whole industries are being reshaped almost overnight. Career paths are shakier than ever. Jobs are vanishing, particularly for entry-level positions.
Which makes me wonder – how do young people even get the experience they need anymore? If all the stepping stones are gone, how do they become the next generation of leaders? It’s a chicken-and-egg problem we need to be talking about more.
AI’s evolving so quickly it’s almost laughable to talk about “being ready”. But we’re in it now, whether we like it or not. I know I’m deep in the bubble, so I’m curious: what are your thoughts on AI?
One last thing: No blog post this week, as I’ve been working on something new – a product designed to help with digital distraction – and I’m looking for guinea pigs 🐹
So if you’re feeling screen-fried, or just want to claw back a bit of your attention span, reply to this email. I’ll send you a free copy in exchange for a bit of feedback, and perhaps a sweet little testimonial if it helps you out.
That’s it for this week. Have a great weekend!
Bene Donovan
P.S. Like my words? Forward this to anyone who’s curious about AI, education, or where the hell this is all heading! (Sign up page)