Hux tackles AI in Season 5, and star Hannah Einbinder isn’t shying away either. At a recent press conference to discuss the show’s final season, Einbinder and Jean Smart, along with series creators Paul W. Downs, Lucia Aniello, Jen Statsky, and others, shared their views on the impact of artificial intelligence on entertainment and culture.
However, it was Mr. Einbinder who did not shy away from humor. “The people who make this stuff are losers. They’re not artists. They’re not creative,” she said at the “Hacks” press conference at the London Hotel in West Hollywood last month. “And they want their whole life to be special. And they’re not special. So they’re trying to steal our talent away from real creative people. And you can’t do that. And even if you try, you’ll never be cool. You guys suck. Nobody likes you.” No, because everyone close to you craves power and access beyond moral standards. ”
This drew much laughter from the audience and a playful protest from Mr. Downs. “In high school, I definitely had a backpack that would roll over. For those of you out there, I’m telling you, some people are fine with it.” Aniello added: “We avoided scoliosis, right? We were in AP classes. We had a lot of books!”
Mr. Einbinder told the creators of “Hax” that they would be fine. But what about the AI engineer brothers? “They did it in a way that I didn’t like.”
Ms Smart shared her concerns that “people are now being trained to never believe what they see or hear” and that “the effects are frightening”.
She went on to say, “As a mother, I’ve been worried about the fact that my kids are constantly looking at screens for years, and I’ve read things that are kind of disturbing. But if it’s already in front of you, either on a TV screen or a Game Boy, then your mind doesn’t have to take that step.” It’s right in front of you, so you don’t have to. It is said that the brain, which is literally the part where imagination works, is getting smaller and smaller. It’s physically terrifying. ”
Downs said this season’s AI episodes won’t mince words or take liberties, saying, “We feel like when it comes to the creative process, it’s something that doesn’t need to be optimized. It’s one of those things where you say, leave it alone. There could be a lot of things you could do, but we’re not going to go there.”
Statsky noted that the episode reflects how the writers feel about technology companies’ efforts to optimize every part of our lives.
“How much does it cost?” she asked. “At what point, how far are you willing to go? You don’t have to optimize everything, because grit and hard work are part of it. It’s part of the creative process. That’s what makes things good. That’s what makes things human.”
Statsky pointed out that AI has useful applications such as medicine and science. “But the problem is that in the society we live in, this technology is always being used to put people out of work, to make those at the top richer, and to make everyone else suffer,” she said. “I wish I had believed it was for the better, but I don’t. And it’s not a good thing until guardrails are put in place, until there’s some stopping mechanism in place to make sure that humanity is protected both in the arts and in people’s lives.”
Mr. Downs pointed to the journalists in the room. “Especially in this time when we’re dealing with attacks on the First Amendment, attacks on freedom of speech, attacks on the truth, we talk about the fact that it’s unregulated. We’re really horrified at what it’s being used for. We’re going to fold our arms around this and be more critical.” You have to talk about it in a way. A lot of people say, ‘It’s inevitable, get on the train.’ OK, well, take it easy. Before you get on the train, let’s make sure it has wheels. What’s going on?
“The Hux” returns to HBO Max with its fifth and final season on April 9.
