Meta's AI Optimism Ad: Extinction Soundtrack

Meta's latest advertisement opens with a monochromatic close-up of an eye, visually representing an individual's perspective as they encounter numerous alarming headlines predicting AI's potential to eliminate jobs, foster social isolation, and trigger widespread crises.

A voiceover then states, "Some people will have you believe AI is going to make us feel less connected. That it’s going to leave us behind," immediately countered by the assertion, "We couldn’t disagree more."

The video abruptly transitions to full color, depicting a montage of diverse individuals opening their eyes and smiling. Subsequent scenes showcase a couple joyfully dancing on a rooftop and gesturing towards a rainbow, teenagers swimming in a lake, a child playing freely in a field, and friends sharing heartfelt embraces after a period of separation.

The voiceover concludes with a defiant message: "Call us optimists. Call us dreamers. Call us whatever the hell you want. But we’re betting on people, and we like those odds," followed by the declaration, "The future is for everyone."

While this sentiment is appealing, and strategically aligned for a corporation investing hundreds of billions into AI's transformative potential for humanity, the most peculiar aspect of the advertisement isn't its portrayal of joyous moments through Instagram-style visuals. Rather, it's the choice of David Bowie's "Five Years" as its soundtrack.

For those unfamiliar with the track, a closer examination of its lyrics and context is highly recommended. The article's author, having a background in poetry, sought an unbiased interpretation by asking their brother, a blockchain analyst with no particular interest in recreational reading, to describe the song's theme.

The brother's response was, "I thought climate change at first, then zombie apocalypse, then an asteroid hitting the earth." This interpretation is accurate, as the song vividly portrays humanity's panic upon realizing their impending demise due to a mass extinction event scheduled to occur in five years.

Without prior knowledge of Bowie's discography, the selected segment of the track might indeed appear cheerful and motivational, aligning with the advertisement's optimistic mood. Its inclusion likely stems from the repeated use of the word "people," which, when stripped of the song's broader narrative, obscures its true, darker meaning.

However, a look at the preceding lyrics reveals a stark contrast: "News had just come over / We had five years left to cry in / News guy wept and told us / Earth was really dying / Cried so much his face was wet / Then I knew he was not lying."

These lines, emphasizing "five years left to cry in" and an "earth was really dying," paint an undeniably bleak picture.

It is perplexing to present AI as a force for global betterment while simultaneously featuring a song about impending planetary destruction. This striking musical contradiction appears to have gone unnoticed by all Meta personnel involved in the ad's approval, including CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

Zuckerberg himself commented alongside the video, stating, "Meta has always believed in giving people the power to share, connect, and shape your world in the ways you want." He added, "As we enter this next wave with AI, we continue to believe the future is for everyone. We’re focused on giving every person the tools to reach your full potential and making sure the benefits of technology are distributed to everyone."

However, a pattern emerges: tech industry leaders are not typically lauded for their literary analytical prowess. For instance, Meta's Oculus division once provided new employees with "Ready Player One," a dystopian science fiction novel depicting an evil, all-powerful VR tech corporation. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has acknowledged being inspired by "Her," a film that cautions against the pitfalls of relying on AI for emotional support. The company Palantir, developers of AI surveillance systems for governments, takes its name from the "Lord of the Rings" seeing stones, which the Dark Lord utilizes for espionage. Furthermore, Elon Musk recently expressed strong opinions regarding the "accuracy" of Christopher Nolan's adaptation of "The Odyssey," a narrative rich with mythical elements like sea monsters, magic, and divine intervention. These examples collectively underscore the critical importance of a humanities education.

This trend is humorously encapsulated by the meme: "Sci-Fi Author: In my book I invented the Torment Nexus as a cautionary tale. Tech Company: At long last, we have created the Torment Nexus from classic sci-fi novel Don't Create The Torment Nexus."

Meta's recent missteps in advertising are not isolated incidents. Rather than intensely pursuing the development of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), leading AI firms appear to be competing to produce the most unsettling promotional content. Just weeks prior, Anthropic unveiled its own disquieting video, which colleague Lucas Ropek characterized as follows:

The Anthropic advertisement commences with footage of a burning house—hardly an encouraging opening—before transitioning to a sequence of still images. These visuals depict a multitude under facial recognition surveillance, a homeless individual sleeping outdoors, extensive rows of cemetery tombstones, and what seems to be a group of laborers extracting raw materials, presumably for smartphones, in a mine.

Concurrently, a voice-over presents various individuals posing critical questions such as "Can AI be trusted?" and "Who’s gonna hit the brakes if we need to?"

Anthropic's intention is clearly to assure viewers of its deep understanding of AI's societal risks, positioning itself as a trustworthy developer of responsible AI. However, the actual sentiment evoked by the ad more closely mirrors the somber tone of Bowie’s "Five Years."

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman reacted to Anthropic's advertisement by remarking, "I thought this was satire, kept looking for the handle to be spelled c1audeai or something."

Despite these companies' vigorous attempts to shape public perception of AI, their current promotional strategies appear to be largely ineffective. A recent Pew survey indicates that merely 16% of Americans anticipate a positive societal impact from AI over the next two decades, while a significant 40% foresee a negative one. Meta, perhaps, will find more success in future campaigns.