Maggie Appleton: https://maggieappleton.com/ai-dark-forest
Near the end of her post, Appleton observes that people with disabilities who rely on the internet for assistance (especially in communication) will have a harder time proving they’re human.
I’ve always been intrigued by the way that wealthier people can voluntarily retreat from forms of technology. When everyone has electric lights and central heating, the wealthy set themselves apart with candlelit dinners and wood fireplaces. I’m sure there’s a term for this phenomenon, but I’ve forgotten what it is.
In a world where everyone has a smartphone (or smart watch), it becomes a mark of status to be phone-free. (Or to send your kids to a school that’s phone-free.) In a world of virtual assistants, it becomes a mark of status to be helped by an actual human. Perhaps higher-paying customers will get customer service from a human being, while everyone else is served by an intelligent computer.