Basketball and the Art of AI

It can be argued that much of the art of playing Basketball is about knowing when it’s the most advantageous to pass the ball. Who’s open? What pass will get the ball to the basket with the least resistance and with the most likelihood of achieving the goal of winning points? Of course getting the ball in the basket is necessary to that end. But you must first get the ball close enough to make the dunk or even a three pointer. It’s the pass and then the basket that often wins the points as well as the game.

How does this relate to AI? In exactly the same way, you need to know when it’s most advantageous to pass workload onto AI to get it close to your goal. It’s not the end. You must of course revise, correct, finish and polish with the knowledge and expertise of your own skillset to achieve a winning output. But human compute is precious and for far too long it has been hobbled by its own evolutionary limitations.

The human brain is very good at pattern recognition and amalgamation of information. But much of the needed momentum throughout human history has slowed its progress because we must take on so much compute with this fatty electrochemical neural network in our skulls. It can only take on so much load and I believe we have reached a maximum. The immense datasets required to break new ground and successfully handle the ever growing workload are limited by human biology. We’re just not made for the realms we now explore with strained attempts to handle it all. We must break free from our biological limitations with a new approach in information management and processing.    

It’s overdue that we offload (pass) our compute to a more efficient and specifically designed system of neural networks to reach a new level of potential. This is not the concept of replacing human beings with an AI. I find that concept repellant and counterproductive. I’m instead referring to Intelligence Augmentation or Intelligence Amplification. This is the act of letting AI do the compute that is best suited for it to get us where we need to go, as close to the basket, unencumbered as possible. That way we are best positioned to dunk. I’m talking about teamwork in its most basic terms. Two discrete processors managing the workload together. Knowing when to offload compute in order to achieve your goal will rise you above the rest and give you the power of a superstar. I have personally experienced this and it’s one of the most liberating of epiphanies I have ever had.

When you have an expertise, talent, and knowledge in a given field, to achieve greatness, requires timing and focus. It can hamper serious progress to focus on things better handed off to an AI to get you closer to the goal. You, as the expert can then review, revise, and editorialize as needed to get a slam dunk. This does not replace the receiver. But instead it augments in the necessary way to achieve the ever important flow gained when synergy of a team is attained. This is when great things happen and when we can become greater than the sum of our parts.

About the Author

Jeremiah Barkman, Product Manager Personify Inc
_{Jeremiah began his journey to the Metaverse in the early 80’s with his first computer, the Commodore VIC-20. Spending his youth in Redwood City California, in the heart of Silicone Valley, he was astounded by the emergence of the home computer. Jeremiah created his first AI algorithm at the age of twelve as a thought experiment after watching the sci-fi film 2001: A Space Odyssey. Later as a teenager he hosted a BBS on his Commodore 128D, helping to bring the early home computer telecommunications community together. Jeremiah has dedicated his life to the goal bringing technology and people together in sustainable and healthy ways. He now directs a team of talented programmers, envisioning new ways to expand the human potential through Intelligence Augmentation.}