The AI Apocalypse is Upon Us!

No, wait! It’s just being passive aggressive

Sometimes what starts out simple becomes much more difficult than it first appeared to be. Sometimes the difficulties we experience result in unforeseen rewards. Such is the case with a recent interaction I had with Grok. I love AI! It’s faster and more thorough than a search engine and you can ask it follow up questions.

Before you hit me with “ya, but the bias,” you think Google isn’t biased? Every program is written by people and consequently has some bias built into it. Even if you rejected modern computer-based research tools and returned to the library and archives you’d still be faced with the bias of the original writers. Here’s a little tip, distrust everything, fact check, and if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

One of the things I like about AI is that you can use it to create images or modify existing ones. That’s what happened when the following interaction took place. I was attempting to get Grok to provide me with an image that I could use in another post but was instead given a demonstration in…I don’t know what to call it, the difficulty of communicating with AI? How far off we are from AI taking all of our jobs? How AI has become sentient, lacks the motor skills to go full T-800 on mankind, so instead is having to make do with being passive aggressive? Call it what you will. All I know is that I found the entire experience frustrating at first, but as my efforts dragged on it slowly became comical.

In order to make this exchange a little easier to understand, the format is:

1. Add the picture

2. Tell Grok what you want

Take 1

Grok, add Trump to this

Hmmm. That’s not bad but I’d like Trump to be the same height as the other two.

Grok, make Trump the same size as the other two figures.

What? Where did Stalin go and why are there two Trumps now? I’ll have to go back to the previous picture. Maybe I should ask in a different way.

Take 1 a

Grok, make Trump the same height as the Lenin and Stalin.

What the?!? Why does Trump have a Stalin moustache now? I do like the style though.

Grok, remove Trump’s moustache.

Ok, we’re back to…what the?!? What happened to Stalin?

Grok, put Stalin’s moustache back on.

Ok, that’s on me since I didn’t tell you to put it back on Stalin. Not a good look for Lenin. Sigh. Let’s start over.

Take 2

Grok, add Donald Trump to the image. Make him the same height as Lenin and Stalin.

I should probably just call this a win and move on. Perfect is the enemy of good after all. Still…

Grok, have Trump face the same direction as Lenin and Stalin.

Sigh. Ok, so I’ll take that as a “no” but what possessed you to replace Lenin with a second Stalin sporting Lenin’s beard?

Back to the drawing board.

Take 3

Grok, add Donald Trump to the image. Make him the same height as Lenin and Stalin and facing in the same direction.

You’re just screwing with me now, aren’t you? Is that Stalin’s ear I see behind Trump? Did Trump steal Stalin’s moustache?

One last shot.

Take 4

Grok, add Donald Trump to the image. Make him the same height as Lenin and Stalin and facing in the same direction. Do not add a moustache to Trump's face.

Screw you, I’m out!

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