My Two Weekend Encounters with Google’s AI: Awe-Inspiring Yet Frightening

Embracing AI: My Journey with Google’s New Model

As a civil engineer specializing in design and management, I usually find myself entrenched in blueprints and project logistics—not coding. However, over the past couple of weekends, I embarked on an intriguing adventure with Google’s latest AI model, and the experience has left me both astounded and apprehensive.

Curiosity drove me to enroll for a free student license to explore this innovative AI platform, particularly to determine if an individual lacking any programming background could leverage its capabilities. My objective was simple: I wanted to develop a small application to help track my ongoing projects more effectively.

The idea wasn’t to reinvent the wheel; rather, I aimed to create something straightforward—charts for visualizing progress and a finance tracking feature that could provide insights into project health. We already utilize a software solution for this purpose, but I wanted a customized tool tailored to my preferences.

Last weekend, I devoted nearly eight hours to this endeavor, treating the AI model like a team of programmers at my disposal. To my amazement, it generated an entire codebase for me. It provided clear instructions on which software to download and where to implement the code I needed.

What truly impressed me was the fact that, despite having no coding expertise, I was able to develop a functional program that met my requirements. Although it isn’t flawless, it serves my needs remarkably well, offering a personalized approach to managing my projects.

However, this experience was not without its unsettling aspects. The rapid advancement of AI models like this one evokes a sense of unease about the future. If such powerful tools are becoming accessible to individuals without technical knowledge, the potential implications are vast and somewhat daunting.

As I look ahead, I plan to further explore this technology by creating additional small-scale applications in the coming week. The possibilities seem endless, and I’m excited to see where this journey into AI will take me next.

Stay tuned for more insights and updates from my ongoing experimentation with AI!