We are falling in love with AI
The haters, the believers, and the undecided — three teams, one obsession.
We are falling in love with AI, and it’s not projection — hear me out. I myself am a power user of AI, I know. While most people are using the free tier models, or 20-bucks subscriptions at best, I have a modest 128GB of VRAM setup at home, running services 24/7, and I use AI for pretty much everything. That aside, the madness I see out there is unbelievable. Let me explain.
The “AI is the worst thing ever” team
On one hand we have the haters: those opposed to datacenters, those who oppose any development in the AI field. They say we are going to be enslaved by AI and the oligarchs — like we are not yet enslaved by them. This team can point out that we, as a species, will be replaced by AI, at least our labour. Which I think is an exaggeration… but it could be. What if it is inevitable? Nobody can stop human progress, it’s not possible — meaning the automation of our jobs is just a matter of time. The IMF estimates that around 40% of jobs globally are exposed to AI, and the World Economic Forum projects 92 million roles displaced by 2030 (though it also projects 170 million new ones created — a detail the haters rarely mention).
They are afraid of AI, some say. I don’t think so. I think they are in love with AI — that is my point. Like when we were young and used to say we hate Sarah, but we were secretly in love with her. You don’t spend your days fighting something you’re indifferent to. Hate this intense is just love with the sign flipped.
We just need to stop for a second and observe. What are the “fears”?
People fear losing their jobs, and that brings insecurity and uncertainty… that is a bad feeling. Some others fear the rise of disinformation — but why? Is it that hard to identify what is real and what is not? Have we come that far, that we can’t tell? If so, why? Is it because AI-generated content is better? Or is it because we are losing our critical thinking? I think maybe, just to give the benefit of the doubt, it is because AI-generated content is everywhere. Some analyses already estimate that more than half of new articles published on the web are AI-written. Since it is everywhere, we have started to doubt ourselves.
But notice what that side is doing: blaming the AI, like if the AI were autonomous. Of course, for them it is not people, it is not the incentives placed in the system. They are not asking the right questions, they are not even asking themselves one or two layers of whys… because they are not thinking rationally. They are in love, and fascinated.
The “AI is conscious” team
Now there is the opposite extreme… those who irrationally say the craziest things about how good AI is… those telling everyone that AI will cure cancer. I hope it will, but it won’t happen for now — at least not this iteration of AI. And the truth is… they believe everything they say. They don’t know they’re lying — to us and to themselves… because again, it is not rational. It is fascination. They are in love. They see AI and project all their desires onto it. It is incredible to me to hear this group and how confident they are — and that is exactly why people believe them.
I think, or I see, a religious aspect here, maybe, but I’m not going too deep on that yet. Not today.
It is amazing how someone can truly believe that LLMs are conscious. And again, think about when we were young (in our teens), in love with the worst girlfriend or boyfriend ever… she or he was probably mean to us but we did not care, there was always an excuse, or we thought it was just that one time, or it was not that bad… Like when the AI hallucinates: they say it is not that bad. But imagine how many people are not capable of noticing the hallucination, or never double-check when the AI says something wrong… they put all their trust in it, even though the AI keeps failing them… exactly like when someone is in love with somebody.
The “I’m in the middle” team
Of course, many people have no strong opinion about AI, and no, it is not fine — hear me out. Unfortunately, those without a strong opinion are driven by those who have one. And the problem with that is that it is like outsourcing our own life… we make a ton of mistakes, and the minimum you want is to own your own decisions, so we can live with the consequences, good or bad.
I’m not going to invest more time writing about this team. At the end of the day, they will go where the majority sentiment is.
But… What does this all mean?
Well, the love is literal for some. Replika has tens of millions of registered users, and a 2025 Common Sense Media report found that around 7 in 10 teens have used AI companions — many of them regularly. We are not talking about a weird corner of the internet anymore.
I don’t know yet for sure… but it is crazy to me, a bit funny and scary at the same time. Datacenters might be the worst thing ever for the environment, maybe — the IEA estimates they consumed around 415 TWh of electricity in 2024 and will more than double to roughly 945 TWh by 2030, about Japan’s entire consumption today. But it is hard to trust the alarm, since the media and the activists gaslit us for decades about Climate Change, and lost their credibility. And yes, I see the irony of quoting an institution while saying institutions can’t be trusted. And the other side is crazy too: just to not agree with the opposite team, they are minimizing the impact on the environment, and society.
In the end, because progress can not be stopped, we just need to learn how to adapt. And if you are deeply troubled by the advance of AI: go get power, stop doom-scrolling on social media, and do something productive.
Meanwhile, I will keep enjoying the ride.