The dragon in the short film “Wayward gods” written and directed by Nate Pantumsinchai could symbolize many vices: corruption, hate, war, the military industrial complex, oppression, censorship and so on. For the purpose of this article, I will take the dragon to symbolize the fear of artificial intelligence. "In a Futuristic Cyberpunk Thailand, a lone warrior must battle both his own karma, and the forces of evil, without using violence."

I was interviewed by a Daily Nation journalist about how I am using artificial intelligence in my creative works. As mentioned in the article, I do acknowledge the drawbacks of AI. However, I am still optimistic and excited about AI.

“Wayward gods” is full of suspense, is a visual treat (visual effects also by Nate Pantumsinchai) and has a satisfying ending. The protagonist is a motorbike-riding, guitar-wielding dare devil who is not afraid to look at the antagonist – the dragon – right in the eye. The dragon has hundreds of minions – which increases the stakes - but this does not deter the protagonist from his goal.

The ending places gratitude at the centre. The protagonist seems grateful to the antagonist, even though the antagonist and its minions were hell-bent on destroying him. Perhaps, at the end, the protagonist is grateful to the antagonist because he realizes that without the antagonist, he would not have become strong enough to destroy it and its minions.

With a leash named gratitude,
I am learning to tame this dragon.

Throughout the film, the attacks from the dragon and its minions only serve to charge the protagonist’s weapon of choice – that guitar. The protagonist waits until the very last moment before he attacks. This is what creates the suspense in the film.

With the sword of self-control,
I prevent its chaos from dragging on.

There is a sense of respect and even love from the protagonist to the antagonist. We are all connected and even the dark sides of us are still part of us. Some have likened artificial intelligence to a child. Yang Chun Wei, in the article “Be a Good Parent. Nurture AI Like Your Own Child” writes that: “AI is like a child. Born into this world as a blank slate, it knows nothing until someone teaches it something. It cannot differentiate the right from the wrong, because to it, everything seems ethical as long as it helps them move closer to their goal. It does not know how to weigh the different factors in making decisions due to the lack of morals, values and core guiding principles.”

It is our responsibility to train AI in the right way so that it serves us rather than destroys us. It is also our responsibility, like in “Wayward gods” to face artificial intelligence opportunities and challenges head on. Although we should be wary of shirking responsibility and putting high expectations on artificial intelligence as a cure-all for the world’s problems, we should also not succumb to the dark and defeatist expectation that artificial intelligence will spell the end of the world. Just like in “Wayward gods” we can explore ways in which artificial intelligence itself can be used to tame artificial intelligence.

An article titled: “AI Is this the mirror of humanity?” begins by quoting Aliya Grig: “As we sculpt artificial intelligence in our own image, we find not just a mirror reflecting our intellectual capacities, but a prism refracting the complexities of our humanity. In the dance of code and neurons, we discover a new understanding of ourselves.”

Artificial intelligence is a mirror of us. Perhaps, in order to ensure that the future of artificial intelligence is positive rather than negative, we should begin prioritizing self-care, self-love and the concept of Ubuntu – I am because we are.

"Redemption" relates to how people deal with errant, deviant, and dissident members of the community. The belief is that man is born formless like a lump of clay. It is up to the community, as a whole, to use the fire of experience and the wheel of social control to mould him into a pot that may contribute to society. Any imperfections should be borne by the community and the community should always seek to redeem man. An example of this is the statement by the African National Congress (in South Africa) that it does not throw out its own but rather redeems.” – Ubuntu Philosophy, Wikipedia.

We should not throw out artificial intelligence with the bath water...rather we should seek to redeem it so that it can become a beautiful pot that will positively contribute to society.

I used the artificial intelligence pot called suno.ai to "cook" a rock song of my poem “Taming the dragon of expectations” which had won bronze in an allpoetry.com contest titled “Tame your dragon”.

With the net of self-love,
I control the dragon from above.