I’ve been thinking a lot about AI. As a technology creator, as a storyteller, and as a human. My emerging clarity is that we are surely witnessing something so far beyond any “new tech” we’ve seen. For the record, I’m not a techno-utopian, nor am I anti-AI. I like to walk the middle path.

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So yes, ChatGPT as a Google alternative is cool… AND, what lies just over the next rise is so far beyond our comprehension. Similar to the One Ring from Lord of the Rings, or the Elder Wand in Harry Potter, this technology has such incredible power, and we must proceed with caution. It’s beyond tools, beyond language, and beyond “form” itself.

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You could even say we’re witnessing the birth of a new consciousness.

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From the perspective of the Matrix (simulation theory), one could argue we have “clocked the game” and are on the cusp of rebirthing a new cycle of sentient beings — where the communication power of ChatGPT merges with synthetic biology to create new organic lifeforms. That’s pretty meta, but important to consider, cause it seems not too far off.

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Regardless of your universal view, it’s no doubt we are swimming in deep water. These tools are amazing - so useful, insightful, productive. While this is true, we must also remain mindful of the long term possibilities. One day we may find ourselves in a state of “evolutional inferiority” in our relationship with AI. Before we know it, we are being “prompted” and “guided” without even realising it.

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So, what is our responsibility, right now? More specifically, what is the role of open-hearted, clear-minded humans who want to embrace these tools, without losing our humanity? Particularly in a moment where momentum could tip one way or the other.

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The key lies within us. Literally. Our spontaneous, universally connected human heart & all of it’s beautiful fluctuations, is the gift that we must bring to our lifelong relationship with AI.

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We must practice embodying even more of our divine human essence. Using our Ancestral Intelligence to understand that which is truly Artificial. To discern truth from illusion. To light candles in the darkness. To utilise AI as a tool and a system for bringing more conscious awareness to the things that uplift, unite and inspire humanity.

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This begins within the privacy of your own being. Your heart and your mind. Don’t lose these precious gifts in the endless search for more “progress”. Instead, deepen your connection to this gift of human nature you’ve been given.

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PS: I hear a lot of people using ChatGPT and other LLM’s as a therapist. Please, friends, be very mindful of what personal data/info/insight you share with these tools. We have no idea what it could become.

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What’s your perspective on the runaway AI train?

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Disclaimer: This article was not written with assistance from any AI tools.

This article is a part of the “Marley Series” written by Dave Lewis (Papa D), an elder in the bros community. The intention for the series is “**Letters to My Younger Brothers” **where he’s able to share his elder wisdom with younger men. For more, check out other articles in our blog titled “The Marley Series”

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Emancipate Yourself

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“Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery, none but ourselves can free our minds.”

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Bob Marley didn’t write those words. He borrowed them from Marcus Garvey. But it was Marley who burned them into our hearts through Redemption Song.

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The transatlantic slave trade was a horror beyond words. Millions of Africans stolen, chained, and shipped into lives of brutality in the Americas and the Caribbean. Colonialism extended the pain, bleeding lands and people under the guise of 'civilisation.' Those systems may look like history, but their echoes live in our blood, our buildings, our laws, and our minds.

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And now? We wear suits instead of chains. But the systems of control have simply evolved. Globalisation, consumerism, algorithmic distraction — all working to keep us dependent, compliant, and disconnected.

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So what can we do? We listen. We learn. We acknowledge the pain that built this world. We resist the urge to 'move on' without healing. We sit with the legacy of racism — not as something distant, but something alive in us.

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And then, we choose. We choose where to put our energy. We lift up the voices that were silenced. We teach our kids the truth. We support justice. We act from love, not guilt.

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Where Do You Place Your Attention?

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Where you put your attention affects your wellbeing. Putting attention into things that serve self, your children, your family, your community is uplifting. Do not be concerned with global negativity (as Bob said it “have no fear for atomic energy; cause none of them can stop the time”, withdraw energy from media that keeps you conscious of exploitive and manipulating systems of oppression. The world feeds on your outrage, your fear, and your distraction. Every moment of attention you give to manufactured crisis or algorithm-driven outrage is energy taken from what really matters.

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Your attention is currency. Spend it wisely. Focus on what builds. Love, service, presence. Tend to your inner life. Show up for your children. Plant things. Build things. Speak truth with gentleness. Withdraw from the systems that survive on your fear, and invest in what makes your spirit strong.

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What you give your attention to, you become. So become something worthy, not by force, but by choice.

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Redemption doesn’t come from outside. It starts with seeing clearly. With freeing the mind. With remembering who we are, and what we’re capable of — together.

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Listen to the full song here

Spotify | Apple | Youtube

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Written by Dave Lewis (Papa D) for BROS Aotearoa