What’s your Substack’s AI policy? And why you need one…

I’ve had a busy week, so I wasn’t able to write my usual Flower Child post.

As luck would have it,

Sarah Fay, PhD

invited me to participate in a Substack Live yesterday about the use of AI on Substack. Please enjoy the recording above of our discussion, and don’t judge me for not being videogenic. Thanks to Sarah for having me, and to

Mathew Long

for his insights! Check out Matthew’s “No AI Content” guarantee on his About page.

Sarah’s timing was good for this week’s Flower Child; her timing was also good because I’d just been discussing AI with a couple of 30-somethings at lunch on Sunday and was blown away by the extent to which it’s become enmeshed in their lives. They don’t limit its use to work. One of them told us how when he goes to the store to buy whiskey, he takes a picture of the bottles on the shelf and feeds it into ChatGPT with the qualities he likes in a whiskey. ChatGPT then picks out the best whiskey for him. I would never have thought of trying that.

Am I feeling old? Yes, I am. But then, I am old, so maybe that’s okay. Still, I don’t want to be left behind.

Most of my life, I’ve been on top of technology. I was emailing and chatting online in 1978, though we didn’t use those terms. I love GPS and home automation and am all about the cloud. I’m thankful that WhatsApp video allowed me to see my aunt in Italy shortly before she died.

But I’m already behind on AI, and it’s just getting started.

I have mixed feelings about AI (for some of my thoughts about it, see “Overall, ChatGPT Will Not Replace Me” and “Get Your AI off My Lawn!”), and I still have a lot to learn about how to use it. I don’t want AI to write my emails (I know, I’m weird — I like writing so much that I even like writing emails), and I will never, ever have it write my Flower Child posts. But I feel like I’m missing out on its potential benefits.

And whether I like it or not, AI is here to stay. I may as well find the best ways to use it; as a society, we need to find the guardrails to contain it. Now is the time to learn what we can, before it gets out of control.

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How do you use AI in your work and/or home life? How do you feel about it?