Chatib Basri Reveals AI Risks, Says Students Must Learn This

Senior Economist Chatib Basri has spoken out about the significant development of AI, including concerns that the technology cannot be used by everyone. “AI actually cannot be used by everyone. My concern is a K-shaped recovery. Because the most important thing in AI is not finding answers, but asking questions,” Chatib said at the Grab Business Forum on Tuesday. For context, a K-shaped recovery refers to an uneven economic recovery. Certain demographic groups, industries, or regions experience different rates of recovery after a recession. For example, one sector may grow and develop rapidly, whilst another continues to decline or struggles to recover. Chatib said there is no longer any point in asking students questions in class, because AI models like ChatGPT are already capable of providing the answers. Amidst the current onslaught of AI, the most important thing is to teach about asking questions. “So the lesson is the lesson of questioning,” he said. However, Chatib stressed that not everyone has the ability to ask questions. He also reminded of the major risk when someone does not understand the context when using an AI model. On that occasion, Chatib gave an example of a programme at Harvard that demonstrates a person’s understanding of a topic using AI. From there, he believes it will result in a huge difference between people who master the issue and those who do not. “So my concern is that those who are clever and master the issue will produce extraordinary work, conversely those who do not understand the issue will produce chaotic work. So what happens is a K-shaped recovery,” Chatib explained.