The interesting world of text AI, and how we maintain our voice. Over the past few years, I’ve seen the rise of AI-driven text editors, which have now evolved into the ability to completely modify one’s written voice, from the words that are used to how their sentences and paragraphs are structured. As someone who once, and somewhat still does, rely on a form of AI for general grammatical corrections, I found the progress in this field fascinating. Because let’s be honest, I am dyslexic and sometimes need help. There were even times when I would allow the system to re-work some of my paragraphs, learning from an alternative revision, implementing changes that I felt better depicted what I was trying to explain. I will be the first to admit that like many of you, I fall into flows of speaking and writing that can be repetitive, so I found it beneficial to allow an outside system to evaluate my work. For years, I found a balance between my voice and what was being recommended, plucking things I liked and removing things that felt artificial. That was until recently when I started working with Apple’s AI revisions. It was at this point that I had realized something had significantly changed. No longer were the corrections ‘my voice,’ they were something different, more artificial, lacking emotion, or connection to who I am and how I intended to interact with others. Sure, the revisions were something. I had created the template, but what was being recommended was reminiscent of a dystopian world where no one truly communicates, using technology to piece together prompts, creating something inauthentic, packaged like a human’s voice, but built by a machine.
Maybe I’m being hyperbolic, but it wasn’t until recently, when I interacted with someone using AI to construct their emails, that I realized the pitfalls of what we are sacrificing when we allow our voice to be revised by machines. If this year has taught me anything, it’s that many of us lack the time and effort to truly devote our attention beyond a few fleeting moments within the day. This isn’t entirely our fault, as we now live in a society that rarely leaves room to learn, grow, or devote ourselves to a singular task. We now have endless stimulation at our fingertips, the ability to communicate in countless forms, and access a plethora of facts at the click of a button. We know how to find things, but we’ve lost the ability to know things. We can search, but we do not understand. Maybe AI revision is the perfect metaphor for what we’ve become, or what we’re becoming: a society that is more concerned with the outcome instead of the art form.
I’ve spent much of this year reflecting on how I can slow down, focus on the task at hand, and truly devote myself to whatever it is that I’m doing. I’ve found that being more intentional with my time often required the removal of technology from my life. As I’ve stripped away the distractions— things like digital calendars, task managers, computers, and phones— I’ve rediscovered a purpose and devotion in the art of doing, learning, and allowing myself the time to complete things in a more meaningful way. Because of this, there is a clarity that I’ve experienced in the way I approach my work or personal tasks throughout the day. Not only do I feel more connected to what I am doing, but there is a balance that wasn’t there before, and an understanding of how I should interact with my day.
This has caused me to look at things like AI, especially in relation to my written voice in a far more critical light. My voice, specifically in its written form, has always been sacred to me. And while it’s not perfect, I have continued to learn over the years, adapting new ways of communicating in order to better clarify myself and what I wish to express. I often look at writing, even in the mundane day-to-day emails, as a way to practice my craft, building on an art form that I’ve learned to love. As someone who is dyslexic and grew up not fully understanding how to use the written word effectively, it had always been a dream that I would, one day, be able to convey my message in a more deliberate and methodical way. Writing has given me that outlet, and has opened a world to endless possibilities.
AI can be a powerful tool if used correctly. However, here lies the crux of the problem: don’t mistake convenience for comprehension. The path is often more important than the destination. Make the time to do the work, perfect the craft, and you will be rewarded with more than the outcome; you will have devoted yourself to something, fully and completely, understanding from beginning to end. That is the true beauty of being alive.
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