As someone who follows the news closely every day, it doesn’t take long to notice the constant ebbs and flows of the news cycle where a huge range of topics arrive upon us and become all anyone is talking about.
This has perhaps never been more true regarding artificial intelligence (AI), with new issues popping up constantly as it becomes an increasingly important part of our lives.
With this, I thought it time to get straight to the facts of AI by asking one of Australia’s experts exactly what we should all know.
Tracey Spicer AM will be well known to many of you. She’s a multiple Walkley Award winning journalist, author and broadcaster who spent more than 30 years anchoring national programs for ABC TV and radio, Network Ten and Sky News. She has of course been a champion for women for decades..
Tracey is also one of the most sought-after keynote speakers and emcees in the Asia-Pacific on the topics of AI, social justice and equity. Her book about AI, Man-Made: How the bias of the past is being built into the future, was longlisted for a prestigious Walkley Award. It won the Social Responsibility category, and was a finalist in the Technology category, in the Australian Business Book Awards.
First Tracey, what exactly is AI? What’s all the fuss?
In simple terms, AI is a constellation of technologies that mimics the human brain. Note the word ‘mimics’ in that sentence. While AI can appear to be human, it is not sentient. All the fuss started about two years ago with the explosion of generative AI, courtesy of ChatGPT. Gen AI produces text, images and videos quickly and cheaply.
Suddenly, everybody could play a part in the AI revolution.
What are the good things about AI and its impact on our lives?
Using machine learning, AI is phenomenal at identifying patterns and predicting outcomes. This is a game-changer in health care, where it can diagnose disease faster and more effectively than doctors, in many cases. In the workplace, it can perform rudimentary, repetitive and tedious tasks, freeing us from the day-to-day grind.
What are the bad things about AI and its impact on our lives?
The answer to this question is multi-faceted. One reason is contained in the title of my book, Man-Made: How the bias of the past is being built into the future. For example, many historical datasets are deeply biased, heavily weighted in favour of white men. Then, the algorithms are being created by a small group of homogenised people in Silicon Valley, known as ‘brogrammers’. They’re coding their own unconscious bias into their creations.
Finally, these biases are supercharged by machine learning. Hiring software is still prone to rejecting applications from women, people over the age of 50, and anyone with a disability. Another obvious negative impact is the loss of employment, as an increasing number of roles are being automated. One of the most disturbing outcomes can be seen in the social services sector, where ‘computer says no’ to a lot of marginalised people, in a replication of the Robodebt scandal.
Tell us about the global landscape. We hear a lot about ChatGPT and DeepSeek (as just two examples)?
The United States and China are currently in an AI arms race. DeepSeek is the recently-released Chinese competitor to OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Its developers claim to have made the app much more cheaply than its US rivals, sending stock markets into a panic.
Due to this fierce competition, governments are increasingly hesitant to regulate emerging technologies, because of the potential benefits to their economies.
What are the issues women should be particularly aware of with AI?
Many AI devices can be weaponised and used for stalking. Apple AirTags, for instance, can be used to track someone without their consent. In the home, Siri or Alexa can be remotely hijacked by ex-partners, who use them as digital spies. Image generators, such as Canva, Midjourney and Stable Diffusion, are more likely to create pictures and videos depicting men as leaders in the workplace, with women either absent or relegated to subordinate roles. It’s incredibly easy to create a nude deep fake of anyone these days. The technology is so sophisticated, it’s almost impossible to tell the difference. And AI voice and facial recognition software finds it harder to understand or recognise women, particularly women of colour. As this technology become ubiquitous, this makes it harder for women to emigrate, obtain credit, or get a job.
Why is AI and these issues important to us?
In 2025, AI impacts every aspect of our lives. Without proper ethical frameworks, this technology will erode human rights, sending us back to the dark ages.
What disinformation should we be aware of with AI?
You might have read stories about how the use of AI will reduce the impacts of climate change. For example, so-called ‘smart buildings’ reduce energy consumption, maximise air and light quality, and increase greenery in urban areas.
However, the positives are often overstated, while the negatives are swept under the carpet. The data centres that house AI servers are large consumers of water. Every time you write a 100-word email using ChatGPT, you’re consuming a standard plastic bottle of water.
Many governments around the world are hanging on to fossil fuels, or pushing a nuclear agenda, because of concerns about AI’s energy needs.
What are the politics to know about with AI?
The Right is focused on the free market, denying the need for guardrails and riding the wave of productivity gains and prosperity.
The Left is more open to regulation and legislation, but still wants to enjoy the many benefits AI can bring to both the workplace and broader society.
What can each of us do to address the concerns you raise?
We often forget that as members of civil society and consumers we have power through a range of actions we can all take:
- Instead of ChatGPT, use Anthropic’s Claude, which is an ethical alternative. As much as possible, boycott Big Tech’s creations and support smaller start-ups, led by women and people in marginalised communities.
- Tell your local member you’d like to see more regulation of emerging technologies. Report deep fakes or tech-facilitated abuse to the e-Safety Commissioner or police.
- Engage in ‘machine teaching’: Every time an image or text generators spits out something bigoted, reject the output and insist it goes back to the drawing board.
- Start conversations with your friends, family and colleagues about the risks and dangers of artificial intelligence, as well as the benefits. Talk to your kids, grandkids, nieces or nephews about the importance of critical thinking, during this time of digital disruption.
- And finally, learn as much as you can about AI, so we can diversify the voices within the sector.
Together, we can ensure the future is human-made, not man-made.
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Thanks to Tracey Spicer AM for sharing her expertise with us. You can buy Tracey’s book on AI here: Man-Made: How the bias of the past is being built into the future,
Let’s draw the line between the issues we all care about—including AI—and our informed vote as we all walk into the polling booth in the coming months to elect the people who will make decisions for us on these vital issues. It really is up to us!
See other articles in this ongoing series:
- How the death of Julie-Ann Finney’s son prompted her advocacy for better veteran mental health support
- Why becoming more politically active is the best new year’s resolution you can make
- We’ve just experienced Australia’s hottest spring on record. Here’s what that means for all of us
- What is the most powerful thing we can do to support asylum seekers and refugees? Jana Favero explains
- Why is abortion suddenly back in the headlines? Here’s what you need to know