I also wonder: ‘Is it possible?’ after writing this title.　However, when I became an entrepreneur with “Information Literacy”, I realised that the ability to read the world alone was not enough. To take a familiar example, as I continue to write a blog on social contribution projects, I need to ask myself: ‘What kind of problem solutions based on what kind of analysis are necessary to write about topics of interest to readers, and how should I add value to the content?’. It is from this perspective that I would like to deal with the theme of ‘Information Producers’ in this blog.

At SoftBank World 2024, SoftBank’s largest corporate event held last October, the theme was ‘The accelerating AI revolution. Focusing on the future, we move now.’ The event featured lectures and special sessions aimed at accelerating the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) under this theme. In a special speech by Masayoshi Son at the same event, he made the following comments.

“In AGI, level 2 is intelligence with multiple doctoral degrees, level 3 is an agent, and at level 4, AGI itself will invent, and at level 5, AI will start organising its activities. Beyond level 5, ASI (Artificial Super Intelligence) will arrive within 10 years.”

(Photo: SoftBank World 2024)

(Reference: SoftBank)

A topic that is always discussed when Artificial Intelligence (AI) develops is the pessimistic view that ‘AI will take our jobs’: remember the machine-busting movement (Luddite movement) by British workers from 1811 to 1817? The Industrial Revolution led to the invention of machinery in the textile industry, which aggravated unemployment among manual workers and the decline in the status of skilled trades, and workers were affected by low wages, job loss and the decline in the status of skilled trades due to the introduction of machinery. Believing that the introduction of machinery was not contributing to the improvement of national life, workers began to destroy industrial machinery in March 1811, when knitters in Nottingham began to destroy industrial machinery, which spread to wool workers in Yorkshire, cotton workers in Lancashire and others. Eventually, the movement went downhill following a government crackdown. But this is not just an old story. Even today, the term ‘neo-Luddite movement’ exists, based on the idea that digital technology and Artificial Intelligence (AI) will take away jobs. However, rather than such worries, the above words of Mr Sun advocated a bright future in which 10,000 times more superintelligence will evolve into more superintelligence, and even Artificial Intelligence (AI) will one day work as an agent for each individual.

Takeo Harada, CEO of our Institute, who also has expertise in Artificial Intelligence (AI) as one of his fields, often tells students and staff about the importance of talking about things academically. The term ‘IMRAD’ used in most journals stands for Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, and Discussion. The acronym refers to the traditional structure of scientific and technical papers. In other words, the key is to speak and write with an awareness of the IMRAD format for communicating things logically. Takeo Harada, CEO of our Institute, continued as follows:

‘Having a Bachelor’s degree is like having a ticket to a game, and you have only just begun. With a Master’s degree, you finally know everything about your area of expertise. And with a PhD, you are not only an expert in a particular field, but you can make a single argument that no one can argue with.’

The difference between a Master’s and a PhD is whether or not you can formulate an appropriate research question (RQ). For writing an IMRAD-style thesis, it is essential to be able to formulate an appropriate research question. That means the research question has “not only a broad meaning for a society but also a completely new with a possibility to test as a hypothesis’. It is necessary to make an appropriate research question when writing the IMRAD thesis, and here, too, novelty, added value and ‘0 → 1’ thinking are important factors. Once we look at modern society, it is no exaggeration to say that Artificial Intelligence (AI) has become widespread and covers almost all the information available on the internet. In addition to this, with various experts predicting the arrival of the Singularity of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) itself becoming a personal agent for humans, it is not hard to imagine that it is information with added value, or information with novelty, that will shine as a human creation. Takeo Harada, CEO of our Institute, had the following to say about the rapid growth of modern Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the humanities/science framework.

‘In archaeology, unless valid documents (e.g. a capital is identified) were discovered for many years, it was difficult to carry out research and be evaluated. In recent years, however, the so-called agentic approach has emerged, in which an environment is set up using Artificial Intelligence (AI), including agents, and calculations are made to determine, for example, what lifestyle changes would occur if the site were simulated in a virtual space. This has made it possible to identify to some extent where archaeological sites may lie, although they have not been documented, and the results are gradually beginning to emerge.’

Therefore, it is possible to view the reality of the fusion of the humanities and sciences as being connected by Artificial Intelligence (AI), as stated in the above example. Regarding the IISIA reading club held at the Institute, Harada Takeo, CEO of our Institute said, ‘Reading books is like breathing air. Therefore, you cannot be pompous just because you read a book. What is important is what you thought about, what you researched, what discussions you had with your colleagues, what hypotheses you made and what original conclusions you came to.’ To the students. He concluded his encouragement to the students by saying that, as these intellectual tasks are universal, whether or not they are aware of this point will determine their future destiny.

When writing this blog, I was reminded of the book ‘Becoming an Information Producer (Ueno 18)’, which I obtained during my student time. According to the book, the basis of learning is, of course, to imitate, and the appropriate consumption of information produced by others is a prerequisite for becoming an information producer oneself. It is essential to collect ‘information’ in the form of books and articles and accumulate it as one’s knowledge and wisdom. However, in today’s information-overflowing society, it is also true that one does not want to become an ‘information dilettante’, which is used to mean a person who is well-informed and fussy about the quality of information. Let me conclude this blog by introducing the book, ‘Become an Information Producer (Ueno 18)’, which has a bit of a punch.

(Book: Becoming an Information Producer (Ueno 18))

(Reference: amazon)

‘Deviant students tend to be information dilettantes with picky tastes. And it often tends to be a matter of being absentminded and fried. Anyone can be a withering critic of other people’s production, and sometimes it’s a pleasure, but it’s not easy to offer an alternative when you’re told to do it yourself. So when you become a consumer, prepared to be in the position of an information producer, the way you consume information changes. How was this information produced? … because you start to think about what goes on behind the scenes.’

The environment in which people can speak freely under the armour of ‘freedom of expression’ is no longer just ‘nice’; we are now used to seeing firestorms all over the social networking environment. However, we live in an information society where anyone can be either an ‘information consumer’ or an ‘information producer’, and we cannot help but hope that the people who handle this information will improve. At the same time, by treating Artificial Intelligence (AI) not as an enemy but as a good partner, we should further consider the thoughts and insights that only we ‘humans’ can create and the added value of information.

【References】

[Ueno11] Ueno Chizuko, “Become an information producer” Chikuma Shinsho, (2018).

※The statements in this blog are not the official views of the Institute, but rather the personal views of the author.

Chancellery Unit, Group for Project Pax Japonica, Maria Tanaka