Why I’m NOT afraid of AI:

Lessons from a Senior Citizen’s Journey with Technology

Introduction

When renovating my late father’s house in Sambalpur, I asked ChatGPT to cross-check the contractor’s tile estimates. What followed floored me.

It recommended room-wise tile size, colour, and estimates for premium, medium, and basic quality — even the prevailing rates for tiles and labour. Then it asked, “Do you need the names of major tile dealers in Sambalpur, and their contact numbers?”

And yes, the contractor’s estimate was inflated by about twenty percent!

ChatGPT added, “Here is a print-ready sheet you may use for your discussion and negotiation with the contractor and tile dealers.”

That small exchange revealed something larger — how AI could simplify life without taking it over.

Recently, a senior colleague asked, “Do you find AI useful? Isn’t it risky to use AI at our age?”

Several months ago, I had made a presentation on AI for Senior Citizens. Some members who attended believed I was an AI expert — which I’m not. But yes, I taught myself to use ChatGPT soon after its launch in November 2022, and since then, I’ve made acquaintance with later AI tools and use some of them fairly regularly.

To be fair to AI, it has not yet cheated me, misled me, or exposed me to hacking or cyber fraud. Thanks, AI, for that.

Three years ago, when ChatGPT burst onto the scene, friends began forwarding alarming messages: AI would take away jobs, write books, become smarter than humans, even end civilisation.

Curious rather than fearful, I began experimenting. Since then, I’ve spent hundreds of hours chatting with ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, and other tools. The more I use AI, the less afraid of it I become.

Ten Reasons Why I’m Not Afraid of AI

1. Because AI is a tool, not my master

Automobiles haven’t made humans forget how to walk or run. Ships travel faster, yet haven’t eliminated swimming. Pascal built a calculator in 1642, but humans still value mental computing.

2. Because I don’t need to merge my brain with a machine

I don’t intend to augment my brain with chips or upload it to the cloud. Singularity may be near — but far from me.

3. Because I am retired and financially independent

AI may eat up jobs, but it cannot sack me. My pension is credited to my bank account, and AI can’t stop that. Only the government can.

4. Because AI helps me without running my life

AI helps me find information, summarise articles, and build reading lists. But I don’t let it write for me. I’m the writer; AI is my able assistant.

5. Because my body still belongs to me

AI may remind me to walk, but only I can take the steps. It suggests yoga, pranayama, and balanced diets — but I do the walking, breathing, and eating. AI is my guide, not my substitute.

6. Because I trust doctors more than chatbots

When I uploaded my annual health report, AI analysed it in seconds, flagged concerns, and suggested lifestyle changes. My physician corroborated its analysis — though in fewer words.

When my doctor prescribes new medicine, I ask AI for pros and cons. I still follow my doctor’s advice, but with greater awareness.

7. Because creativity comes from lived experience

I was born in Khuntpali, a small village near Bargarh in western Odisha. I climbed mango trees, fled from fiery red ants, swam in rivers, watched Krishna Leela in the village square, and wept when a squirrel I nursed died.

AI has never loved, lost, or lingered over a memory. Those experiences are mine — and irreplaceable.

8. Because AI has information; humans have wisdom

AI knows a lot. But it doesn’t feel. It can summarise Shakuntala and King Lear, yet it cannot grasp the sorrow that moved me.

AI never feels anxiety before an exam or joy after success. It processes data; I process life.

9. Because I know enough about AI to use it intelligently

Fear often comes from ignorance. I’ve experimented with ChatGPT, Bard, Gemini, Copilot, Perplexity, Claude, and Meta AI. Sometimes they err; when corrected, they thank me.

AI has never tempted me to explore its dark powers. I know what it can do — and what it cannot.

10. Because being human is still an unbeatable advantage

AI can generate a story; I can live one.
AI can predict the next word; I can imagine the next world.

What AI Has Actually Done for Me

I use AI for research, brainstorming, fact-checking, suggesting books, organising thoughts, and creating illustrations for blogs. It has saved me several trips to the local library.

My curiosity often leads me to test AI’s limits — not for profit, but for understanding.

During my early days, I tasked AI tools to solve the Civil Services Preliminary Examination General Studies-I paper to compare their capabilities. In 2026, I repeated the test. The responses differed — they processed only a few questions, not all hundred, because each response consumes energy and costs money.

If I buy a subscription, they’d oblige.
No, thanks. My curiosity is intellectual, not commercial. I’m happy with my free account and its limitations.

Be Human

After three years of using AI, I’ve reached a simple conclusion: AI is neither a miracle nor a monster. It is a powerful tool — perhaps the most powerful created in my lifetime.

Used wisely, it saves time, expands knowledge, and stimulates creativity. Used carelessly, it encourages laziness and dependence.

I am not afraid of AI because I know what it can do — and what it cannot. It cannot replace a lifetime of memories. It cannot experience love, loss, friendship, wonder, gratitude, or hope. It cannot walk at dawn, watch a sunset, hold a grandchild’s hand, or remember the smell of wet earth after the first monsoon rain.

Be human. Use AI. Learn from it. Benefit from it. But never surrender to it the wonder that makes us human.

Like the tiles in my father’s house, AI helps me lay the foundation — but the design remains mine.

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