A.I for the masses – The great equalizer
I work with people of all ages trying to break into the digital and tech world. So imagine my surprise when, even in the middle of the AI boom, many of them are still afraid that AI is going to steal their job. This fear isn’t isolated to just one group or demographic—it’s widespread. That’s when I realized my mission: to help break down these barriers and replace fear with curiosity.
The digital world moves fast. If we don’t help people understand and embrace AI now, they risk being left behind.
Every week, I hear the same questions:
“Is it going to take my job?”
“What if it gets too clever?”
“How do I know the information is accurate?”
“Isn’t this cheating?”
As someone who now finds themselves being called an “AI expert” (a title I still find surreal), it’s my responsibility—and the responsibility of every AI educator—to listen, to empathize, and to explain.
Here are the core truths I share with every group:
Our job is to spark curiosity. The people I teach don’t need to know the inner workings of neural networks. They just need to see how AI can simplify their lives, enhance their creativity, and open up new possibilities.
We must meet fear with excitement.
Source: ZDNet – 34% of people are afraid of AI
https://www.zdnet.com/article/research-34-precent-afraid-of-artificial-intelligence/
That said, we can’t simply brush off the fears. AI is not without serious risks.
Biases, underrepresentation, and the erosion of human creativity are all valid concerns. To address them, we must first demystify AI. I often start with this line:
“Artificial Intelligence is a lie.”
It grabs attention. AI isn’t actually intelligent—it’s a powerful tool trained on enormous data sets. It reflects what it’s been shown. If those inputs are biased or unethical, its outputs will be too.
Ethical use requires critical thinking. Users must question where these tools come from and how they’re trained. And most importantly, they must read, review, and refine everything AI generates before putting their name on it.
There’s also the danger of overreliance. If we treat AI as a shortcut for everything, we risk dulling the very human creativity it should support. As AI becomes more capable, we must protect the spark that makes us human.
Madoc Wade puts it well in his essay Is AI a Threat to Human Creativity?. He argues that AI isn’t going to outshine human artists. Instead, the real threat is economic: businesses favoring cheap, AI-generated content over human-made work. Creativity isn’t being replaced directly—it’s being priced out.With this in mind, ethics around AI must be the next step to be taught, after their curiosity has been peaked.
AI is here to stay, and it’s evolving at a pace most of us can barely track. If the UK wants to stay competitive, it must start teaching AI in schools. Not just to computer science students, but to every child who will grow up in an AI-integrated world.
There are fantastic programmes, like Catch22’s Digital Skills Academy (which I help facilitate), aimed at 16–24-year-olds. But in many ways, that’s already too late. Countries like China, South Korea, and India are teaching AI fundamentals to children as young as eight.
Right now in the UK, AI isn’t a required part of the national curriculum. It’s up to individual schools to choose whether or not to teach it. This deepens the digital divide.
If we want the next generation to use AI ethically and effectively, we must spark their curiosity early. Ethical understanding comes after exploration and excitement. We can’t expect them to act responsibly with tools they’ve never been taught to use.
AI has the potential to be the great equalizer. It can open doors, amplify voices, and create opportunities for those who have historically been left behind. But only if we make it accessible, ethical, and exciting.
That’s my mission. And I hope it becomes yours too.
Teach others with wide-eyed curiosity—but always keep caution just one step behind.
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