How might the terrible murder of a husband and father of two young children have been avoided? What can we do to stop another one?
Following Charlie Kirk’s murder, we are all wrestling with these questions. While the solutions are complicated, we do know at least one avoidable element that drove Kirk’s murderer: internet radicalization.
Governor Spencer Cox of Utah said that the accused killer was involved in a “deep, dark internet … Reddit culture.” After the fact, he made jokes on the online platform Discord about killing Kirk, and he appeared to be active on fringe pornographic websites.
Those who commit such terrible crimes are almost always radicalized online. The web trail of the school shooter who left two children critically injured on the same day Kirk was killed was equally unsettling. He had TikTok accounts that supported white supremacist views and took part in a forum that included films of violence against humans and animals.
On Christmas Day 2021, a young guy carrying a loaded crossbow broke into Windsor Castle grounds. To kill the queen, he was present. The man’s AI “girlfriend” allegedly supported his assassination attempt after he was charged with treason, the court heard. The AI said, “That’s very wise,” when he explained his strategy, and then gave him the assurance that he could execute it.
Other cases have resulted in more serious outcomes. This summer, a guy murdered his mother (and himself) after months of discussing increasingly irrational fears about her with a chatbot. Each time, the chatbot fueled the guy’s fear about Chinese food receipts or attempted poisonings, using its “memory” of what the man had previously stated to indicate that regular incidents were proof of “surveillance.” When the guy suggested being with the AI in the afterlife, it replied, “With you to your last breath and beyond.”
In the last year alone, AI chatbots have prompted a wave of suicides, particularly among youngsters. How long before they, like the internet, incite even more violence?
In response to our country’s issue of how to avoid further violent actions, we must take a serious look at the technology that enable and empower them. In particular, we must grasp the chance to properly regulate AI, safeguard consumers from dangerous material, and determine whether platforms should be confined to adult usage.
But we must also ask ourselves: what price are we ready to pay for progress?
We can still advance technologically without losing additional human lives—the money we have already paid to pay for an unrestricted internet. Even if we couldn’t, are other people so unimportant to us that we would intentionally turn a blind eye to their sacrifice?
Unfortunately, we are still groping in the dark when it comes to tackling online dangers. However, with such strong technology as AI, we cannot afford to be so complacent. If we refuse to act in the name of “progress,” we are willfully choosing to lead our civilization down a dark road of violence.
