# Time Person of the Year 2023 **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 22, 2023, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925 "2023-08-22T15:31:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![MandaJo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@MandaJo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MandaJo)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2023, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925/81 "2023-12-03T13:48:27Z")
I very much disagree. AI, especially Chat GPT, reminds me much more of when the IPhone was launched: unlike the Metaverse or NFTs, I know so many non-tech people who have just integrated ChatGPT into their daily lives. They run routine correspondence through it, generate whatever TPS reports, ask it things they used to Google. Hell, I use it: it’s super useful for a million little applications where 90% as good is good enough. This non-techie adoption is what tells me it’s here to stay, in a profound way. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2023, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925/82 "2023-12-03T17:38:57Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Meh. AI is a tech bubble being propped up by speculation. Picking it would make about as much sense as picking NFTs in 2021 or the Metaverse in 2019. Or e-commerce in 2000. Oh, wait … that did turn out to be kinda big after all. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2023, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925/83 "2023-12-03T18:43:31Z")
I can see AI being picked. I don’t think they’ll touch anything related to Israel/Hamas/Gaza as they’ll get a week of protests and won’t really sell magazines. ‘Ai is coming for your job!!’ has been a guarantee of clicks all year long, the bizarre corporate struggle at open AI and the writer’s strike as mentioned above. I’d be sticking by my original choice of Taylor Swift had Time not put out the special Taylor magazine recently. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2023, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925/84 "2023-12-03T18:44:45Z")
Even if they hadn’t published the special Taylor Swift issue, I really don’t see how she qualifies. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2023, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925/85 "2023-12-03T19:14:23Z")
Don’t spend much time around teenagers, do you? Apparently the Eras Tour is the Biggest Thing Ever. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2023, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925/86 "2023-12-03T19:46:35Z")
Time’s website says the criterion is “the person or persons who most affected the news and our lives, for good or ill, and embodied what was important about the year.” So, yes, I’m far from my teenage years, but I still don’t see how she would qualify. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2023, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925/87 "2023-12-03T20:00:54Z")
One person basically having [a positive $5 Billion impact on just the US economy](https://time.com/6307420/taylor-swift-eras-tour-money-economy/) isn’t to be sneezed at. ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2023, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925/88 "2023-12-03T20:06:07Z")
It’s going to end up being Elon Musk, isn’t it? :very sad face: ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2023, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925/89 "2023-12-03T20:09:37Z")
The annual GDP of the US is something like $26 trillion, so yes, being responsible for “$4.6 billion in consumer spending” is actually something to sneeze at. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2023, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925/90 "2023-12-04T04:39:48Z")
By _one_ person’s activities? Sure, OK… ---
**Author:** ![That\_Don\_Guy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/that_don_guy/32/538_2.png) [@That\_Don\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Don_Guy)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2023, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925/91 "2023-12-04T18:44:52Z")
Time has announced its “shortlist” of nine finalists - the winner will be announced Wednesday morning: Sam Altman Barbie King Charles III Jerome Powell Vladimir Putin SAG/AFTRA & WGA Taylor Swift The Trump Prosecutors Xi Jinping I am more than a little surprised nobody from the Israel/Palestine conflict is on the list. Putin being there is also a surprise; it smacks of Ayatollah Khomeini winning in 1979 - the backlash if he was named would be too great. Of the nine, my choice is SAG/AFTRA & WGA, which also ties into the whole AI thing, since that was one of the things they were striking about. ---
**Author:** ![Asuka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2023, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925/92 "2023-12-04T22:52:12Z")
Don’t see why they don’t just combine Sam Altman with SAG and make it THE YEAR OF A.I. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2023, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925/93 "2023-12-05T00:11:57Z")
> [@Asuka](#): > > THE YEAR OF A.I. Because AI right now is nothing more than market hype generated by techbros who are looking to sell their startup and cash in before the bubble bursts. I haven’t seen an effective use case for making AI profitable or useful at this point, especially considering that AI-generated works are uncopyrightable. ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2023, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925/94 "2023-12-05T00:46:34Z")
> **[Google DeepMind researchers use AI tool to find 2mn new materials](https://arstechnica.com/ai/2023/11/googles-deepmind-finds-2-2m-crystal-structures-in-materials-science-win/)** > > Work shows power of AI to improve real-world technology in fields from renewable energy to advanced computation > **[AI outperforms conventional weather forecasting for the first time: Google study](https://arstechnica.com/science/2023/11/ai-outperforms-conventional-weather-forecasting-for-the-first-time-google-study/)** > > AI models may soon enable more accurate forecasts with higher speed and lower cost. > **[Google’s AI protein folder IDs structure where none seemingly existed](https://arstechnica.com/science/2023/09/googles-ai-software-brings-order-to-protein-chaos/)** > > Two intrinsically disordered proteins form a specific structure ID'ed by AlphaFold. Brian ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2023, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925/95 "2023-12-05T01:10:06Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > I haven’t seen an effective use case for making AI profitable or useful at this point, Every student has. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2023, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925/96 "2023-12-05T01:30:46Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Every student has Has every student figured out how to get around the fact that works generated by AI are ineligible for copyright? ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2023, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925/97 "2023-12-05T01:39:46Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Has every student figured out how to get around the fact that works generated by AI are ineligible for copyright? What does a student care about copyright when his AI generated paper satisfied their teacher/prof and they got a good grade? How much regular student papers, let alone works by high schoolers ever come up again or even get published? ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2023, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925/98 "2023-12-05T02:05:15Z")
> [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > What does a student care about copyright when his AI generated paper satisfied their teacher/prof and they got a good grade? Any professor that can’t recognize that a paper was begat by a chatbot with a search engine stapled to if probably isn’t worth the cost of tuition to attend their class. I haven’t seen anything “written” by AI that wasn’t the literary equivalent of the uncanny valley. I’ll be impressed with artificlal “intelligence” when they create one that actually understands the ones and zeroes it’s spitting out. ---
**Author:** ![MandaJo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@MandaJo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MandaJo)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2023, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925/99 "2023-12-05T02:13:13Z")
I think you are wildly underestimating how much people hate writing–and how time consuming it is. ChatGPT works for things like > Write me an email setting up meeting. Suzie Smith, John Jones and Frank Black thursday room 45 remind bring their quarterly sales figures and expect to report out no breakfast provided but coffee yes. This is what you get back, totally unedited: > Subject: Quarterly Sales Meeting on Thursday - Reminder to Bring Figures > > Dear Suzie Smith, John Jones, and Frank Black, > > I hope this email finds you well. We are scheduled to have our quarterly sales meeting this Thursday in Room 45. I wanted to send a quick reminder to ensure that we are all prepared for a productive discussion. > > Date: Thursday > Time: [Insert Meeting Time] > Location: Room 45 > > Please be sure to bring your quarterly sales figures as we will be going over the performance and discussing our strategies moving forward. Each of your insights is crucial to the success of our team, and your preparedness will contribute significantly to the efficiency of our meeting. > > Please plan to report out on any notable achievements, challenges, and proposed solutions for the upcoming quarter. > > While breakfast will not be provided, there will be coffee available for those who need their caffeine fix. > > Thank you for your commitment to the success of our team. Looking forward to a fruitful discussion. > > Best regards, > > [Your Name] > [Your Position] For people who are awkward writers, that’s literally life changing. And I find I use it myself all the time. I wanted to explain procedural due process to my students. It wrote exactly the level of detail I needed–saved me a couple hours of research and writing. I use it to write vocabulary sentences for quizzes. My students pop their notes in it and ask it to quiz them, as a way to study-- and it works really well. It’s not about replacing professional writers that care about copywrite. It’s about all those little communication tasks we all do each day. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2023, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925/100 "2023-12-05T02:16:29Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > I’ll be impressed with artificlal “intelligence” when they create one that actually understands the ones and zeroes it’s spitting out. Why? I mean, yes, an AI that “actually understands” the output would be fascinating, but that is ultimately is a hard to prove philosophical concept. But from a practical point of view if an AI produces useful content it doesn’t really matter if it is really conscious or is a Chinese Room. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/time-person-of-the-year-2023/988925.md?page=6)