Man the Tool-Maker

One of my favourite and captivating counties in The UK is Wiltshire. It is rich in archaeological finds; if you haven’t already, explore the sacred triangle of Silbury Hill-Avebury Stone Circle-West Kennet Long Barrow.

As you ascend the path to West Kennet, study the soil in the adjacent fields: it’s stacked full of flints, each sharp and with a little effort can be made razor sharp. Imagine Early Man’s delight at a tool for weapons, for skinning and for creating shelter. Here, in these unremarkable-looking stones, early humans discovered their first great technological breakthrough. For man is a tool-maker and he’s created an endless succession of them since his arrival on planet earth.

Artificial Intelligence represents merely the latest link in this ancient chain. Despite the unprecedented hyperbole surrounding its emergence-far exceeding the quiet revolution of those first flint artisans-AI remains fundamentally what all human innovations have been: a tool. Like the flint blades of West Kennet, it demands skilled handling, proves only as capable as its wielder, and will displace human work only in those roles that were already narrow in scope, easily defined, and repetitive in nature.