2024 AI Institute: The fairytale of GenAI from Darragh Coakley

According to Midgley (2003), “Myths are not lies. Nor are they detached stories. They are imaginative patterns, networks of powerful symbols that suggest particular ways of interpreting the world. They shape its meaning.”. 

The concept of mythology is particularly relevant for examining generative Artificial Intelligence (Gen AI) tools. Much like AI, mythology is a tool to, regardless of place or time, explain one’s environment, universal laws of nature, aspects of culture, etc. -- but which also is something in itself which proceeds to impact upon and shape one’s the nature of the culture, the morality and the society it exists within.

This presentation will seek to examine the examine the role of generative AI tools and their potential impact in higher education through the lens of several mythologies and figures in folklore, to contextualise some of the commentary and fears which have been expressed and to examine what these reactions can tell us about the education systems and structures in which we operate.