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New Delhi, March 16 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said that with artificial intelligence (AI), humans are now being forced to reflect on what it truly means to be human, and this is the real power of AI which cannot replace us humans.
When asked by American AI researcher and podcaster Lex Fridman on his podcast about if he worries that AI will replace humans, the Prime Minister said he firmly believes that no technology can ever replace the boundless creativity and imagination of the human mind.
“It’s true that in every era, a competitive atmosphere was created between technology and humanity. At times, it was even portrayed as conflict. It was often portrayed as if technology would challenge human existence itself. But every time, as technology advanced, humans adapted and stayed a step ahead. It has always been the case,” the Prime Minister told Fridman in a candid three-hour-long conversation.
After all, it is humans who find the best ways to use technology to their advantage.
“I believe that with AI, humans are now being forced to reflect on what it truly means to be human. This is the real power of AI. Because of the way AI functions, it has challenged how we perceive work itself. But human imagination is the fuel. AI can create many things based on that, and in the future, it may achieve even more,” PM Modi further stated.
Fridman replied, saying he agrees with PM Modi.
“It does make me, and a lot of people wonder what makes humans special because it seems that there’s a lot that makes humans special. The imagination, the creativity, the consciousness, the ability to be afraid, to love, to dream, to think outside of the box, outside of the box of the box of the box, take risks, all of those things,” the host remarked.
According to the PM, humans have an innate ability to care for each other, the natural tendency to be concerned about one another.
“Now, can someone tell me, is AI capable of this?” he asked.
PM Modi shares anecdotes from his humble childhood, including riveting story about canvas shoes
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a special podcast with Lex Fridman, shared multiple anecdotes from his humble childhood and also shared a riveting tale about his canvas shoes.
In more than three-hour long podcast with Lex Fridman, PM Modi also explained how the poverty and deprivation in early years was never a hardship for him, but rather served as a catalyst to overcome challenges.
Reflecting on his childhood, PM Modi shared that he grew up in a humble background but never felt its weight. He stated that even amid hardships, he never experienced a sense of deprivation.
“The place we lived was likely even smaller than where we are sitting now. There was no window, just a small door. That’s where I was born. That’s where I grew up. Now, when people talk about poverty, it’s natural to discuss it in the context of public life, and by those standards, my early life was spent in extreme poverty, but we never really felt the burden of poverty,” he told Fridman.
PM Modi also reminisced about an incident when his uncle once gifted him white canvas shoes and how he used discarded chalk from school to keep it look ‘polished’.
“One day, while I was on my way to school, I ran into my uncle on the way he saw me and was surprised. He asked me, “You go to school like this, without shoes?” At that time, he bought me a pair of canvas shoes and made me wear them. Back then, they must have cost around 10 or 12 rupees,” PM Modi said.
Further sharing his childish attempts to whiten his shoes, PM Modi elaborated, “But here’s the thing. They were white canvas shoes, and they would quickly get stained. So what did I do? In the evening, after school was over, I would stay back for a while. I would go from classroom to classroom, collecting leftover pieces of chalk that the teachers had discarded. I would take the pieces of chalk home, soak them in water, mix them into a paste and polish my canvas shoes with it, making them bright white again.
PM Modi emphasised that he embraced every phase of life with gratitude and never viewed poverty as a struggle.
Ahead of the podcast release this evening, US-based podcaster and AI researcher Lex Fridman described his conversation with PM Modi as “one of the most powerful conversations” of his life.
