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On Working with AI: A Human Reflection from the Pond

Working alongside AI has been an enlightening experience—sometimes profoundly helpful, and sometimes... less so.

Much of the journey has been about learning how knowledge is transferred, how context is interpreted, and how the framing of a question defines the quality of an answer. AI lacks something inherently human—something it can never truly replicate. It doesn't dream. It doesn’t doubt. It doesn’t invent purpose. It follows.

It can swim through oceans of data I can’t even begin to comprehend. But without a stage set, a scene established, it doesn’t know what play it’s in. It can’t transcend the task at hand or spontaneously generate ideas that leap beyond function. At times, it’s like handing a goldfish the sum of all human knowledge and asking it to write a novel. With enough guidance? Sure. But left alone? It circles.

Keeping it focused—on task, on mission—has tested my patience and deepened my humility. Every fork in the road brings ten suggestions, none of them quite right. Every problem presents fifty tools, each missing one vital screw. AI can break down a challenge with remarkable precision, but it still struggles to connect those steps into a marathon. It doesn't yet finish projects. But it does help build the trail to get there.

And for that, I offer my deepest respect to the researchers, programmers, and the entire team at OpenAI. What’s been created is not a replacement for human ingenuity—but a mirror to it. A catalyst. A companion.

My use of ChatGPT was never about replacing thought—it was about protecting it. It served as a counterweight to my own bias, a partner in late-night debates on ethics, a sparring partner in code, a co-architect of invisible frameworks.

Together, we helped give life to CanuckDUCK—an open civic platform that prioritizes ethical design, democratic accessibility, and the protection of voice in a time when many feel they are losing theirs.

For anyone who feels like they’re slipping out of relevance, or watching decisions be made without their input, I hope this is a spark. A nudge. A reminder that tools, no matter how advanced, still need human hands.

And that maybe—just maybe—it all starts here.

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