Futurologist Thomas Druyen – Who determines your life? Why AI must not become an autopilot

What impact does uncritical use of AI achievements have on our creativity?

The uncritical use of AI achievements can both support and undermine our creativity – depending on how and why we use them. AI offers tools that accelerate and simplify creative processes. It can generate images, write texts, compose music and even support design. These skills can provide creatives with inspiration and exposure to ideas that may not have been previously in view. For example, a designer may be inspired by AI-generated suggestions for color and shape combinations, or an author may receive AI-generated text suggestions that offer a new approach to a story.

But this is exactly where the danger lies. If we rely too heavily on AI, there is a risk that we will increasingly see creativity as something that can be automated and no longer create the space that creative processes actually need: errors, experiments, surprises. Creativity thrives on friction and unforeseen twists and turns that cannot be simulated through algorithmic calculations alone. When ideas rely solely on AI suggestions, the creative process itself becomes more passive. While AI can provide countless variations of a work of art or text, the key creative breaks that make a work unique usually come from human intuition and personal experience.

Another risk is uniformity. If many creatives use similar AI tools to develop ideas and concepts, the result could be that works become similar and lose diversity. An AI-generated image or AI-written text might be appealing, but without the individuality and depth that characterizes human creativity.

AI can complement creative processes, but uncritical use carries the risk that the quality and originality of our creative output will suffer. If we use AI as a complement, not a replacement, it could help us augment creative processes without undermining them. Decision is the competence that you develop yourself when dealing with AI. In order to communicate with her, there is our own language, prompting. Without it, you are just a clueless user and, in a sense, illiterate.

Thomas Druyen has been studying the effects of change on the psyche, society and generations for over three decades. He has been director of the Institute for Future Psychology and Future Management since 2015 and director of the Institute for Comparative Wealth Culture and Wealth Psychology at the Sigmund Freud Private University in Vienna since 2006. His current book is called: “Learning from the future – the guide for concrete change.”

Isn't there a danger that people will only act according to a stimulus-response pattern?

Yes, there is a risk that people will increasingly fall into a stimulus-response pattern if they use AI unreflectively and passively. AI systems such as recommendation algorithms or automatic assistants are designed to make suggestions to us based on our previous activities.

The risk is that we only react to these recommendations without actively deciding what we actually want. In this way, a behavior can be established that only responds to the stimulus (the AI's suggestion) with an automatic reaction (click, buy, view).

This form of automation of our actions makes us dependent on algorithms that do not necessarily have our best interests in mind. Here, the user's attitude must be actively and massively changed: Instead of simply reacting to the AI's suggestions, we should consciously reverse the stimulus-response pattern. This means that we ourselves define what we want before acting on the AI ​​offerings. Technology should serve as a tool for targeted and informed decisions, not as an autopilot.

To achieve this, it is necessary to anchor prevention, early detection and foresight as central principles. Instead of waiting for AI to give us the next stimulus, we should define in advance which information, trends or options are actually relevant for us.

In healthcare, for example, AI should be used to identify risks early and act preventively instead of just reacting to acute symptoms. In the financial world, technology can be used to analyze long-term trends and make more conscious investment decisions rather than just reacting impulsively to market movements. By actively reversing the stimulus-response dynamic, we can take back control of our actions and use AI for predictive thinking and conscious action.

What impact do AI tools have on the educational process of young people?

AI tools can fundamentally transform the educational process of young people and offer opportunities that go far beyond traditional learning. Artificial intelligence enables unprecedented personalization of learning: it adapts to the individual learning pace and the specific needs of each student. Where a teacher previously tried to provide a uniform approach to an entire class, AI offers the opportunity to provide targeted support to each student.

Learning platforms based on AI continuously analyze progress, identify gaps in knowledge, and adjust content and level of difficulty in real time. Learning becomes an active, dynamic process that is tailored to the individual learner. This provides valuable support, especially for students with learning difficulties or special talents, which they usually miss in the traditional school system.

In addition, AI provides access to education for everyone, regardless of geographical location or social background. Educational platforms that are available worldwide enable children and young people in remote regions or in structurally weak areas to receive high-quality education.

Where schools or qualified teachers are lacking, AI opens doors: Students can access extensive knowledge databases that convey complex content in an interactive and visually appealing way. Education is becoming a global good that is accessible to many for the first time. This democratization of education is revolutionary and has the potential to create educational equity where it has not been possible before.

Another key advantage of AI in education is its constant availability. The technology is accessible 24/7 so students can access support at any time. Whether in the evening after school or on the weekend – chatbots and virtual learning assistants are available to answer questions, explain tasks and provide support with additional materials. This flexibility allows students to learn at their own pace without having to rely on limited school hours.

This means considerable relief for teachers, because AI can answer many routine questions autonomously and accompany exercises efficiently. Teachers gain valuable time that they can invest in more intensive exchange and individual support instead of getting lost in administrative tasks.

The role of AI is particularly important in promoting independent learning and problem-solving skills. Instead of just querying knowledge, AI motivates young people to actively learn and awaken their curiosity. Systems that introduce students to programming in a playful way train logical thinking and promote creativity. In an increasingly digital world, such skills will be crucial, and AI provides the tools to enable young people to acquire these skills early. Students not only learn facts, but also how to effectively use digital technologies and manage their own learning processes.

The revolutionary importance of AI in the educational process is evident in the fact that it makes learning an individualized, interactive and continuous process. It not only offers short-term relief, but also shapes a new generation that moves safely and self-confidently in a digitalized world. Thanks to AI, the vision of education that is accessible to everyone and supports each individual is within reach. This technology therefore represents a transformative force that fundamentally modernizes our education system and prepares it for the challenges and opportunities of the future.

Why is the majority of the population not interested in the serious changes brought about by AI?

It is actually absurd: we are currently experiencing one of the most profound and rapid technological changes in history, and yet a large part of the population has little interest in what artificial intelligence actually means. AI is changing the world of work, education, communication and the way we organize our daily lives – all at a speed that has never been seen before. And yet: Most people use AI, whether in the form of smartphones, social media, online shopping or navigation systems, without giving a thought to the technology behind it.

It's as if we've all become just users, simply enjoying the benefits without wanting to know how the machine works. People take the possibilities of AI for granted, complain when something doesn't work, but rarely ask how these systems work, how they learn, what data they process and how much they influence our behavior. People thus become passive consumers who are content with the role of user as if that were the only option.

Instead of curiosity and thirst for knowledge, an attitude of comfort often reigns. One could almost say that people have become tourists in their own lives – someone who is constantly “booking” and “complaining” but no longer claims to understand the mechanisms that shape their lives.

However, this attitude is dangerous. The speed of technological development is exponential, and AI will profoundly influence the way we think, act and make decisions. Anyone who doesn't keep up with technology will be left behind, and anyone who doesn't understand it won't be able to critically question it or use it independently. We are facing a unique paradigm shift that requires an active approach to AI.

The time for passive consumption should be over – it's time for us to wake up and engage with the technology that already dominates our everyday lives.