How do I escape AI?
How do I escape AI?
I HATE AI I HATE AI I HATE AI I HATE AI
Google Gemini, the company’s AI model (what they deem to be an assistant), is unavoidable. Under every search, I feel its sole sparkle emoji symbol mocking me. In protest, I swipe by its “AI Overview” as fast as possible every time it comes up.
Though I’ve come to learn that merely swiping past it does nothing. The damage is already done. The search drains more power and evaporates more water with each keystroke. Realizing I have no control in this, I sheepishly type into the search bar: “how do i escape ai?”
Without fail, Gemini pops up to answer my query. Instead of scrolling past, I read it, hearing it out this one time. It seems to have misinterpreted my question. Instead of answering it, I’m given advice on how to “avoid AI detection in writing.” A sponsored ad titled “Make AI texts Undetectable - Bypass AI Detectors” pops up along the bottom. My stomach turns.
Upon expanding the answer, I get something that is closer to what I had originally hoped for. Gemini does give me a solution on how to turn off its AI search results when I make a Google search. Though it involves creating a custom search that uses a particular phrasing of code to signal the prompt to not show up. At last, there is a way to escape Gemini’s idiotic search overviews, but it feels like it might be intentionally hard to get around. I unfortunately don’t think most internetgoers will be memorizing a search prompt to avoid AI anytime soon.
It’s not just Google that stuffs their AI models down your throat. Almost every major search engine has their own version. It goes further than search engines though. Let’s turn to a once beloved — though was he ever really beloved? — pestering green owl. I picked up consistently using Duolingo about a month ago in an effort to feel more productive when I’m bored. I saw it as an alternative to the aimless scrolling on soul-sucking social media that I’ve become accustomed to.
After I complete each lesson, I am met with an unskippable ad that usually promotes one of Duolingo’s premium subscriptions, Super Duolingo or Duolingo Max. Each tier describes AI-implemented bonus features, the most notable one being the video call feature, where you can “call” one of the characters to practice speaking the language you’re learning. The idea itself is exciting, especially since gaining the confidence to speak in a different language is one of the hardest learning curves to overcome. The video call feature was announced at Duocon 2024 and is claimed to have been worked on by a team to deploy the AI technology. It’s a great idea, but it is tainted by the fact that Duolingo continues layoffs as more AI appears in their content. It keeps me from making the jump to purchasing a subscription.
Speaking of conferences, this year’s Adobe MAX also had a heavy focus on AI implementation. One of their featured sessions was about how to use AI when creating videos, and there’s even a whole tab about sessions at the conference on generative AI.
My instagram feed has been peppered with sponsored posts tagged as #adobepartner, that boast features like generative AI remove or generative workspace (both powered by AI). The designers in these videos don’t seem to have any problem with the use of AI in their creative field, which concerns me, though I know I’m not the only one who feels this way. To get more of an in-depth look at what went down at MAX and why being frustrated is completely okay, check out this episode of design podcast kelliot on YouTube. They do a much better job of explaining what is going on, as I am not a graphic designer.
Another quick aside I’d like to mention is @momoandsasa_ on Instagram. It’s an account that creates complete slop, for lack of a better word. It seems to be entirely AI-generated, weaving intricate webs of stories surrounding two AI-generated dogs and the magical pet universe they live in.
The plot pretty much never makes sense, but there are still times I fall down the rabbit hole and cannot stop myself from getting sucked into a constant loop of watching these videos. There is something so absurdist about the account that it can be entertaining in a sick way. I’m not sure what this means for the bigger picture, but I’m admitting that I am most definitely not perfect in my own efforts to avoid AI.
There are still some victories in this AI-hell we live in. For instance, book publisher Penguin Random House now has a policy on AI that will be added to the copyright page in their books: “No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner for the purpose of training artificial intelligence technologies or systems.” Not all is lost here.
The aforementioned shortcomings of Adobe MAX were brought to my attention by graphic designer Kel Lauren, who I have been a fan of for years. They made a reel in opposition to the push of AI at MAX and advocated that creatives should move toward practicing physical art as a form of resistance.
It’s a great point. The only way to truly escape the growing omnipresence of AI is to close the computer, to turn off your phone. Move to your table, open a book you’ve been meaning to read or a notebook or sketchbook you’ve neglected and just read/write/draw/do whatever your heart has forgotten it desires. It feels good to do, to realize you can handle a world — even if just for a moment — that is without screens constantly demanding your attention.
The realization has made me even consider a life where I turn in my iPhone for a flip phone, or my computer for a typewriter (or an old Brother word processor like the one I grew up using).
Although I know, in the end, solely relying on old technology isn’t realistic, it’s still a nice idea to entertain. Writing in my journal isn’t going to save the world and forever bring an end to AI, but it is something I can do as a small form of resistance, however it may look. A future aided by AI is not one that we have to or should accept, but we must begin taking steps now, as the younger generation, to prove that we do not need to rely on AI to survive.
Let me know your thoughts on AI, if you have any strategies to combat it, or just any anecdotes you’d like to share. I’d love to hear your thoughts on this.
My album recommendation with this newsletter is “444” by hemlock. I love putting it on in the morning when I’m journaling with the window open to let the cool air in (my current chosen form of AI resistance). Check it out.
And I will do the dishes that I meant to do this morning
And I'll brush my teeth
And go to bed
And try again
And try again
And try again
And try again
And try again
And try again
And try again
And try again
And try again
And try— “Drive & Drive” by hemlock
I make use of AI to replace what Google used to do: dig out answers to simple questions. The image-slop is getting tiresome – but the mad accidents that it paints are amusing. At some point AI will feed solely on content generated by other AI engines and will eat its own tail, but until then we may be living in a golden age. Admitting that I use AI feels like admitting to wearing a toupee: no matter how convincing, there’s a taint. (I do NOT wear a toupee and this example is just an instance of my fabulous imagination.)
bold of you to call momo and sasa slop........