RV Education 101’s Mark Polk Bemoans AI-Produced ‘Info’

Mark Polk

EDITOR’S NOTE: RV Education 101, the longtime education resource for RV consumers founded and operated by Mark and Dawn Polk, recently published its July 2023 newsletter. Below is Mark Polk’s introduction to the July 2022 issue.

Happy Independence Day! Please remember the people who fought and died for our independence. We the people need to hold our government responsible to preserve and protect our liberties and freedom.

I need to vent a bit. I am sure most of you have heard about AI (Artificial Intelligence) by now. It has quickly taken over every walk of life. It is in every industry, and AI capabilities are immense; from altering business operations and manufacturing processes to something as simple as creating online content and digital educational material.

It didn’t take long for it to enter the content creation space in the RV industry too. When I opened the program I use to create this monthly newsletter I was greeted with this message:

Let AI do the work, say goodbye to writer’s block when you use our new AI (artificial intelligence) tools. Just provide a few keywords and select a message that resonates.

I always create my own content, but I was curious to see AI in action, so I tried it. The instructions said to write one or two sentences using key words about the topic you want content on. I wrote, RV spring checks you can do to get your RV ready to travel and camp.

This particular AI tool gave me options to select from “professional,” “informative, “persuasive” and more. I selected informative. I tapped on the generate button and within 10 seconds it provided two article options for me to choose from. What it does (I think) is scour the internet looking for related content that ranks high in search engines and then arranges the content in order, similar to a checklist that you can follow. The articles or lists it generated were for the most part simple items like check the tires, inspect the batteries, check the lights, etc.The content told you what to check but not how to do it.

I found this interesting because a few days ago I was reading an article someone wrote, and I recall thinking to myself the content was extremely vague. It told you what to check but not how to check it, or what to do if a problem existed.

Here is one example AI generated in the article for me when it mentioned the batteries:

Test the batteries: Check the batteries and replace them if necessary. Make sure they are fully charged and properly installed.

Test the batteries for what? Check the batteries for what? How do you make sure they are fully charged and properly installed? Then it hit me, the article I read a few days ago was most likely created using AI. I guess you could take what AI generates and post it as a standalone article, or you could expand on the content AI generates for you.

I wanted to see if AI would provide more technical detail on a subject if the information I provided was more specific. This time I selected “professional” and I wrote, How do you inspect and test RV batteries?

Again, it generated two articles within a few seconds. It did provide more detailed information about inspecting and testing RV batteries, but I noticed a couple problems too. I think by removing the human element it eliminates common sense. For example, the AI generated content said, RV batteries typically last two to three years. If your batteries are older than this you might want to replace them. Common sense should dictate you don’t replace batteries simply because they are over three years old. You replace a battery when it goes bad, and if the batteries are properly maintained they should last about six years. In another example the AI content said, a fully charged lead-acid battery should read between 12.6 and 12.8 volts. If the reading is lower than 12.6 volts you might need to replace the battery. Common sense should again tell you if a battery is at or below 12.6 volts it needs to be charged. You wouldn’t replace a battery before trying to charge it first.

These are very basic examples, and my first time seeing AI in action. If I used this generated AI content on my blog I am misleading people, who do not fully understand batteries, into believing they should perhaps replace the batteries under these two circumstances.

In my opinion what AI generated content is going to do in my small realm of the RV world is dumb things down more than it already is; and confuse readers who are searching for reputable content on a specific topic. Useless content so you can post articles on a blog, or in a newsletter is wrong. And watch for the law suits to come when AI takes copyrighted content to crank out these articles, just so the user doesn’t need to think or use their mind to create the content.

Creating accurate, useful, vetted content requires experience, knowledge, and an understanding of the topics you are writing about. Content creation takes time, creativity, and requires some writing skills. Now anyone with an internet connection can create content on any topic in a matter of seconds, But, ask yourself as you read the content, does it really explain and provide the information you are looking for. If it is AI generated content my bet is that it doesn’t. So, beware of where you get your information as it pertains to RVs.

If there is confusion and misinformation in something as simple as creating RV content, just imagine what AI will do on a much larger scale or operation. It troubles me to think about it, Okay I am done venting.

Enjoy the newsletter, and as always if you have family or friends who like RVs and the RV lifestyle please share with them too.

Mark

Source: https://rvbusiness.com/rv-education-101s-mark-polk-bemoans-ai-produced-info/