Valerie Veatch’s brilliant Ghost in the Machine is a radical and necessary documentary that is being thrown into the center of our meaningless, nightmarish world of over-exaggerated artificial intelligence hype. Taking on the fraught fundamental question of what we think of as knowledge and weaving it into a sweeping exploration of modern techno-fascism, it already feels like an important text for our moment.
The film is more of a witty, dry video essay than a traditional documentary, while still bringing in plenty of critical analysis from a wide range of experts. It begins in Seattle in 2016 – a simpler, sunnier time. But as is often the case with the city itself, ominous storm clouds soon gathered. In this case, the clouds came together when Microsoft began exploring the use of an artificially intelligent chatbot (which they named “Tay”) that could “interact” with people on Twitter.
Within a day, chatbots turned into Nazis, eating up all the hateful garbage on the internet and spitting it out. Microsoft shut down the chatbot, but, as Veatch’s documentary confirms, this opened Pandora’s box. “Ghost in the Machine” says it doesn’t have to be this way.
This poignant opening is followed by a whirlwind experience that addresses the pressing historical and sociological questions that underpin the technology. Veatch moves quickly between interrelated themes in an exciting way, although it may be overwhelming for some. Her films come out at a confident, breakneck pace and never slow down.
The film believes that there is no time to waste and it rises to meet the present moment. Widget will not be frightened by “Ghosts in the Machine,” but, like one of the women in Scooby-Doo’s mysterious gang, uncovers the truth about the fantasies surrounding these ghosts: an extension of techno-fascism.
While it might come off as preachy or tiresome in the wrong hands, “Ghost in the Machine” has an interesting edge that keeps you hooked. Veatch is on a crusade to expose the costly lies we’re told about artificial intelligence. But her film and a host of fascinating and knowledgeable experts present their arguments with such convincing passion and incisive analysis that only the most self-serving AI evangelists would deny academic rigor.
At the moment, everything else about artificial intelligence seems to be built on desperate hype, and Veatch cuts through all the noise and wakes us up from this nightmare. Although she never appears in person, her fearless films make her the Michael Moore of our hyper-networked world.
The film does have some hiccups at certain moments when Veatch himself leans into the use of artificial intelligence. While these sequences highlight how ugly and nightmarish the technology can be, they don’t always feel necessary. Using AI tools against itself can only go so far.
You’re willing to cut Veatch some slack to explore this question, and it’s a strange, dark irony to see AI-generated graphics depicting data centers consuming our world. At the same time, given that the film espouses the rejection of artificial intelligence, it’s hard not to feel like this could have been made by a real artist and be more ideologically consistent.
That minor quibble aside, “Ghost in the Machine” cuts through all the nonsense about artificial intelligence with clear eyes and compassionate care. It pulls no punches and delivers a valuable blow to Elon Musk and the evil Silicon Valley that breeds people like him. It diagnoses the disease that is eating away at the human soul and does not shy away from the damage caused.
However, just as important, it provides the knowledge needed to forge paths that pull the world in a better direction.
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