Known for being the next great leap for society, Artificial Intelligence continues to improve and progress. Yet its promises come with risks that are already reshaping human relationships, privacy, security and social stability. It becomes harder to recognize what is harmful as AI’s rapid evolution raises urgent ethical and societal concerns. 

AI was first officially developed in 1956. It is a digital computer or computer-controlled robot developed to have the ability to perform human-like intelligence.

According to CSU GLOBAL, AI isn’t a single tool but a repertoire of models, algorithms and models used to solve complex problems and automate tasks and is knowledgeable in several other fields because of its access to a large volume of data. 

Nowadays, AI has become way more efficient than it has ever been. It’s now more incorporated in our lives especially with the creations of apps such as ChatGPT for everyday tasks and its versatility that makes its usage more proficient. There are also more skilled specific applications like Jasper, which is for marketing and helping businesses promote their products.

However, these advantages can be harmful to humanity. By relying too much on AI, we are slowly losing our most sacred ability–thinking.Therefore, there should be stricter regulations. It should be only used to facilitate mundane tasks rather than just generally replacing human labor. 

Due to its rapid development and efficiency, AI is now confirmed to take the equivalent of over 90 million full-time jobs, however the technology will also help create 170 million jobs over the next five years according to ABC News.

Although the job creation is twice of what we will lose, it is still not an advantage to the future generation because we are not being taught how to adapt to this new wave of technology. Most of us have already chosen a traditional career and before we even get the chance to major in it, they might already be displaced. Many aspiring college students aren’t even aware of these major changes in the workforce, therefore students should be advised and informed about how AI’s impact might be more extensive than we are aware of.

These immediate harms are troubling enough, however AI raises even deeper concerns as new systems move closer to human-level cognition.

Recently there has been a race toward artificial general intelligence or AGI, a form of AI that can possess human level abilities. Abilities include free thinking and active learning.  Essentially, AGI would be able to solve problems that it wasn’t specifically designed for. With this form of AI, users will now have a fast and intelligent thinking program that learns anything. 

This has been said to have repercussions, including ethical concerns.

An arms race of sorts around the world between nations has come up, involving the advancement of AI’s. AI’s are producing what’s known as electronic waste, where used technology in AI systems is discarded after use, polluting the world. These consequences are shaping up the future of the world. 

AI in education has also been a huge issue, with problems regarding academic dishonesty and ethical questions. These problems are actively affecting our local society with the district banning ChatGPT beginning Dec. 1. This ban specifically highlights the district’s response to what it deems the problem of ChatGPT and other forms of AI to be: something students can use to cheat. This example shows a huge issue regarding AI in school. 

AI browsers are being created quickly too, such as Google’s Gemini AI browser, ChatGPT Atlas, OpenAI and essentially every other major browser incorporating some form of AI into their system. A simple google search can lead to an AI answer first instead of reputable sources.

Other drawbacks include less privacy for users and what are known as prompt injection attacks where users trick AI with faulty prompts to reveal other users private and sensitive information. According to Lastpass Prompt Injection Attacks in 2025 hackers were able to extract personal user information from files successfully 68.2% of the time. These strikes on privacy showcase another negative effect of AI.

As AI continues to reshape our work and daily tasks, its influence now extends into our personal lives where it is increasingly being used as a companion and moral support, which slowly harms social interactions and teens’ mental health. 

Character.AI, one of the most popular companion platforms, allows people to build or talk to conversational characters who offer entertainment and attention on demand. The company markets its bots as conversation partners, however what’s marketed as a support increasingly resembles emotional outsourcing.

According to a Common Sense Media 2025 report, 33% of teens use AI companions for social interaction and relationships. These conversations become a form of emotional mirroring when bots consistently respond with validation or encouragement even when users express self-harm or suicidal thoughts.

Teens’ brains are still developing, making them even more vulnerable to new exposures. When they learn to seek reassurance from programs, the risk of having underdeveloped social skills and self isolation increases. 

Platforms like Character.AI should be required to block or redirect conversations involving real issues by turning teens toward real human support. They should also disclose how bots are trained and what data they collect so users understand they are interacting with programmed simulations, not friends. Finally, digital literacy education must be funded so teens learn to recognize the difference between emotional connection and emotional imitation.

The distortion of emotional reality isn’t the only danger. AI is also blurring our perception of visual truth and enables new forms of deception that spread even faster on platforms such as the internet. 

The term “deepfake” is a video or image that is digitally altered, which was made by an AI called “deep.” Usually, deepfakes are used to alter a person’s face by removing the original face and replacing it with another. Sora AI, created by parent company OpenAI, gives users the ability to make photos and videos simply by just tapping a “+” button and asking AI to generate or alter a video or image. Others like Grok, Luma Ai and Runway AI also generate videos and images. 

Recently with the rise of deepfakes, effects of AI generated media have caused a turmoil. Without AI restriction guidelines implemented, users are able to generate almost any photo or video they ask for. There have been cases where people have received calls from scammers to collect personal information using an AI voicebox to persuade the victim to fall for it. Additionally, AI has been used to primarily copy individual faces onto violent and sexually exploited videos that are made to trick users into thinking they are real.

Deepfakes continuously cause a major setback into social media and in real life. With AI generated media taking over platforms like X and TikTok, it has caused a rift between what users think is real or fake, causing a sense of psychological manipulation. AI generators regarding videos and images should have more restrictions across all social media platforms and websites.