Technology Can't Climb The Wall For You: Will The Rise of AI Drive Us To Disconnect?

As a product designer that strives to improve the human experience over automated human control, I was inspired recently by a post written by Gary Vaynerchuk, otherwise known as Gary Vee, over on LinkedIn. The link is there if you want to watch the video, but in a nutshell he postulates that as technology, algorithms and AI control what we see and begin to act on our behalf, there seems to be a youthful rebellion to disconnect and seek real life experiences.

Could going out and doing things old school to build your community be the new punk rock? This article from Newsweek earlier in the year seems to agree. "Appstinence" is a growing trend where millennials and gen z are seeking time away from screens and social media to attain real human connection, without the distractions we carry around in our pockets.

I get it. There is AI to call you and AI to answer your phone now. AI is used to create content and then used to track what you like only to serve you more of the same until you're trapped in an echo chamber of anger and discontent. Meanwhile humans aren't doing the creating or consuming all while they're missing out on the very life that is happening right in front of them if they only just opened their eyes and experienced it.

I agree with Gary that the next wave of $Billion companies are going to come from the pioneers who create apps and experiences that build engagement and drive strong community. People are going to disengage when the technology noise gets unbearable. Getting 100 likes is not the same as being liked. I can show you pictures of what it looks like to visit and climb the rock walls of Kalymnos, Greece, but you can only experience it by going there, touching the rock, witnessing the views and doing it, with real friends.

I believe AI can be a tool to help us create better but I don't believe it can create better for us. AI only knows how human experiences are described in words and not how they feel. It has no context for experiences and therefore cannot generate them for you. I'm reminded of a quote by Alan Watts which goes "You can't get wet from the word 'water.'" How do you make someone experience the feeling of being wet if they have never touched water?

As product designers, how do we build apps that will make people want to experience the ocean, a river or compete in global masters swim clubs, and not just read about them on their phone? How do we make time away from our devices more valuable. In design we call that "white space" or "negative space", the part that makes the design elements more compelling. Right now apps are the design elements and humans are the white space. Maybe not for long?