2.5 Thorsten Jonas | AI & Sustainable UX
As stewards of the future, the time is now to tackle AI
Hi, it’s me, Sera, your host and Founder of The Craft! It warms my heart to share this episode of friend and Founder of SUX, Thorsten Jonas! 🎤 If you rate the podcast, send me a screenshot, and I’ll send you a free PDF on growth design. 😊 Free mini course coming soon. ✨ You can also book a call with me here if you need guidance.
“People are using AI and not questioning the results they get. Truth is not a factor. Probability is. Large language models are biased by default depending on what data was fed into them. Who controls the data that is fed into them? That’s the first question everyone should ask.”
— Thorsten Jonas
Read my highlights below to get a quick overview and listen to the full episode on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple.
Highlights
Thorsten went through a burnout. He was using his work to prove his self-worth. The burnout caused him to reflect on what is important to him and ultimately changed his career.
Develop your own internal worth and don’t tie it to something outside of yourself (e.g. job title, work performance).
Humans should be able to control AI. Accidents with planes and Teslas are a good example of what happens when AI gets the final say.
We need to question the use case for AI and whether it is actually necessary, not default to AI. The technology we create changes us and we should proceed intentionally.
AI is a massive consumer of energy and water. Thorsten recalls an article that says 10-15 prompts consume 0.5 L of water. “A single ChatGPT conversation uses about 50 centilitres of water, equivalent to one plastic bottle.”1
Large language models are biased based on the data fed into it. It reflects human bias back to us. We need to ask what data is being fed to it and who is controlling that data.
Sera is optimistic that younger generations are shifting the status quo created by previous generations. Change is happening.
Thorsten thinks truth is vanishing through social media and now with AI things are getting worse.
We need to deal with these things now as good stewards of the future, otherwise it will be too late.
Chapters
(00:00:00) Thorsten, Digital Sustainability Trailblazer
(00:08:09) Going through a burnout
(00:22:38) Is AI the right solution?
(00:25:38) Energy and water consumption of AI
(00:28:03) AI education and bias
(00:32:16) Human creativity
(00:34:14) What is truth?
(00:35:25) Surveillance in Nazi Germany
(00:38:14) Momo and stealing time
(00:39:49) Harmful KPIs, manipulation, & dopamine
(00:41:44) Data privacy, GDPR, regulations
(00:44:40) Change is many small steps
(00:46:27) Having conversations & finding compromises
(00:51:40) SUX, workshops & masterclass
Resources:
SUX Academy: https://sustainableuxnetwork.com/academy
Sustainability Resources: https://suxnetwork.notion.site/
Momo (book referenced) (buy locally if possible)
Where to find Thorsten Jonas:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dolbydigger/
Website: https://thorstenjonas.com/
Where to find Sera Tajima:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seratajima
Website: https://www.seratajima.com/
Sustainable Growth Playbook: https://www.the-craft.io/
Discord: https://discord.gg/Ke4MxXvSsn
If you have questions for me or feedback on this piece, email me here and say hi: seratajima@substack.com. ✌️
Gordon, C. (2024, March 12). ChatGPT and generative AI innovations are creating sustainability havoc. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/cindygordon/2024/03/12/chatgpt-and-generative-ai-innovations-are-creating-sustainability-havoc/