AI wants to know

A poem and some thoughts about venturing online these days

Photo by Kev Costello on Unsplash

AI Wants To Know

What makes you tick?
What makes you want to
click, heart, like, buy now!
before you miss out

Before you forget
what you really need
before you remember
what you already have

Your life’s not bad, but
you compare and can’t
see the big picture
on this little screen

Maybe it’s time you
remember
what makes you tick
in real time

In real life
not hers, not his—yours
the one you’re missing
right now

///

The struggle is real, friend!

It seems like we are being bombarded with curated images everywhere we go—on our apps, TV, at gas stations, in magazines, everywhere. Get this cream, that bag, this planner! Watch this video, follow these steps, take this supplement! This is what we need to be like the imaginary moms in our heads—the ones who make motherhood and life seem effortless. 

As if our own inner dialogue of all the things we should or could do isn't loud enough, we are reminded every time we pick up our phones, turn on the TV, or go to a store. And AI doesn't miss a thing. It knows that you were hovering (if only for a few seconds) over that IG ad promising thicker hair. It tracked me when I clicked on that new line of full-coverage swim bottoms. 

AI algorithms will keep us searching, consuming, scrolling, scrolling, scrolling through our apps. And so often, what we find is perceived lack, comparison, envy, and the temptation to buy our way toward the promise of something better. But AI can’t remind us that we are not alone—that living and mothering will not be confined by squares and captions. AI doesn’t get to decide what you and I need. We do.