\u201cYou\u2019d be hard pressed to find someone who has spent more time building or obsessing over the online zeitgeist, for better or for worse,\u201d Alexis Ohanian introduced himself at the BRIDGE Summit in Abu Dhabi on Monday. <\/p>\n
Ohanian, a founding partner at venture capital firm Seven Seven Six, is perhaps best known as the co-founder and former executive chairman of Reddit. \u201cBeing chronically online was part of the job,\u201d he said, as part of a conversation with TIME executive editor Nikhil Kumar. TIME is a media partner of the BRIDGE Summit, which has gathered a global community of creators, policymakers, investors, technologists, media institutions, and cultural leaders to discuss the landscape and future of media.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
But the advent of artificial intelligence has made platforms like Reddit, which once served as hubs of connection, less human, Ohanian said. \u201cConservatively, I\u2019d say 20% of all the content we see on social media is fake in some form or another,\u201d he said, echoing some concerns that others have labeled the dead internet theory<\/a>. \u201cNo one really is immune,\u201d he added, explaining how AI models that train on social media data have incentivized the mass creation of content, often utilizing AI, simply to manipulate those models.<\/p>\n Ohanian said he isn\u2019t sure how the problem will be solved\u2014\u201cSomeone is going to have to crack what the next wave of social media looks like that verifies humanity or somehow allows us to understand who is real, without scanning everyone’s retina\u201d\u2014but he also spoke about why he still considers himself an optimist in the face of this technological evolution.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen our screens get 100 times more addictive and better, I think a part of our humanity suffers,\u201d he said, but it also will increase the desire to have real-world experiences that center humanity. \u201cLive events are going to be one of the, I think, best parts to come out of this AI wave that folks don\u2019t, maybe, intuitively consider.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n