Critics insist AI will ruin us these small business owners and workers already know better

If you listen to the loudest voices in the artificial intelligence debate, you would think America is on the brink of an apocalypse and that “Terminator”-style robots are hunting humans, rogue computers are turning on their creators like Hal in “2001: A Space Odyssey,” mass layoffs are rampant and data centers are destroying all of our small towns.But three years after ChatGPT was first introduced, the new normal of life with AI so far is a lot less dire and a lot more convenient.The technology has enabled medical professionals to spend more time with their patients, allowed small business owners to expand more quickly and hire more employees and helped entrepreneurs promote their endeavors.That is the emerging picture from people I spoke with across the country, and it’s also reflected in the data.Google’s recent ATLAS study of 15 million Gemini users found AI is primarily used as a complement to work and doesn’t replace human work.There are, of course, legitimate concerns about privacy, misinformation and whether AI might be fueling some people’s delusions — but there is also a great danger in refusing to adopt the most important technology of the modern age.Many tech executives I spoke with suggested the real fear is not getting replaced by AI but rather getting replaced by someone who knows how to use AI.That’s also how Ita Reyes, who runs Ita Yoga Studio in Ann Arbor, Mich., sees it.“When the internet showed up … if you didn’t jump on it you were left out,” Reyes, who also manages a hardware store with her husband, told me.

“This is the same exact turning-point moment … If you don’t jump into this wagon, you’re going to be left behind … It is such a simple, simple tool that can do so much.Why would you not give that to yourself and to your business?”Reyes credits her Meta glasses, which can record footage and upload her photos, with making it easier to promote her studio.“As soon as those came out, I started taking c...