The Future of AI: Will It Completely Replace Humans?

Recently, the world has seen significant developments, especially in the tech sector, with AI models advancing rapidly. In just one month, companies in the US and China have intensified their competition in AI model development. On April 14, NVIDIA released an open-source AI model family for quantum/hybrid computing called “Ising”. On April 16, Anthropic upgraded its flagship AI model Opus to Opus 4.7, showing notable improvements in advanced software engineering, visual understanding, and long-process reasoning. On April 23, OpenAI launched GPT-5.5, along with a system card and several accompanying plans. On April 24, China’s DeepSeek company officially released DeepSeek-V4, further enhancing performance.

AI model competition remains intense.

Stanford University recently published the “AI Index Report,” highlighting two key points: First, leading models improved from less than 10% to approximately 38.2% on Humanity’s Last Exam within a year, a benchmark consisting of 2,700 highly challenging questions across various academic disciplines designed for expert-level, closed-answer, and easily auto-graded formats. Second, through unified scaling of diverse evaluations, it was found that by 2025, leading systems would reach or approach established human baselines in several advanced reasoning assessments, including PhD-level scientific questioning (GPQA Diamond), multimodal understanding and reasoning (MMMU), and competition-level mathematics (such as AIME/MATH). However, in areas like automated software engineering (SWE-bench Verified) and agent multimodal computer usage (OSWorld), models still fall below human baselines, although the pace of improvement is accelerating.

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In daily life, many have indeed found these AI models to be very useful, particularly in creative fields. Numerous AI-generated videos have emerged online, with some platforms even hosting AI creation competitions. Ideas that once required high-cost productions can now be realized by a single person with a sufficiently powerful computer. While there are still noticeable errors, this trend indicates a significant shift that could impact the film industry.

This brings us back to an old question: As AI technology continues to develop, is the replacement of humans an inevitable outcome? Before answering, consider the news: Neuralink, founded by Elon Musk, announced plans to mass-produce brain-machine interface devices this year. Although Musk has previously made ambitious claims about achieving manned lunar landings between 2024 and 2025, significant breakthroughs in brain-machine interface technology have indeed occurred, with both the US and China capable of developing implanted, semi-implanted, and head-mounted devices, successfully helping disabled individuals regain mobility in some charitable initiatives.

A head-mounted brain-machine interface controlling a robotic arm to pick up a bottle.

Why mention this technology? The principle of brain-machine interfaces is to allow the human brain to send control signals directly to external electronic devices, achieving a “mind control” effect reminiscent of science fiction. The process involves four steps: signal acquisition, algorithm decoding (machine learning interpreting neural signals), instruction execution, and sensory feedback (visual and tactile return). There are three technical paths: one is invasive, where electrodes are implanted in the cerebral cortex through surgery for maximum signal precision, but it carries high surgical risks and potential immune rejection; another is non-invasive, where a device worn on the head collects scalp EEG signals to connect with machines, which is convenient but has limited precision; the third is a hybrid approach, placing electrodes between the skull and the brain.

Reports and research have linked brain-machine interfaces closely with AI, as the former’s key challenge is decoding brain electrical signals, which the latter can facilitate. This means that future AI could directly read information from our brains. This realization may evoke fear, as it marks the first time humanity has acknowledged that our brain information could potentially be read directly, and this technology is of our own invention.

The human brain may no longer be a “black box” in the future.

While resistance to this idea is natural, the immense convenience and potential for civilization advancement offered by this technology cannot be overlooked. Therefore, legislation and oversight are crucial. In this context, AI serves as a “booster” for humanity. It can assist us in organizing documents, searching for and compiling hard scientific knowledge, and, when combined with brain-machine interfaces and exoskeletons, can enhance individual human capabilities, turning soldiers into “superhumans,” making rescue operations safer, and allowing disabled individuals to regain freedom. Isn’t this a beautiful future?

Returning to the question, the answer is clear: the notion that AI will replace humans is a fallacy. AI will not replace humans; it will take over highly repetitive tasks, which will indeed lead to unprecedented unemployment issues. Therefore, the current anxiety surrounding AI development stems more from fears of its impact on jobs and income. As noted by renowned actor Tang Guoqiang in a popular entertainment program, “AI will definitely replace real actors! ‘Nezha 2’ is an animation without real actors, yet it still grossed more than you (referring to a certain type of performing artist)!” This is the crux of the matter.

AI actors.

So, how can ordinary people avoid being replaced by AI? The core point is to maintain essential human skills such as emotion, creativity, empathy, and critical thinking—traits that AI cannot replicate. Especially creativity, as all of AI’s capabilities are built upon organizing and integrating human-created results and learned skills. It does not create new things; instead, it is a creation of humanity. If AI can replace even this, it would no longer be a product of humans but a new intelligent species.

Additionally, maintaining a mindset of continuous learning is vital. In an era of information explosion, stagnation is perilous. One should aim to update their knowledge system approximately every year to avoid being left behind.

Treat AI as a tool, not an opponent.

Finally, individuals should either diversify their skills or delve deeply into a specific field to become a “professional” in that area. Regardless of the path chosen, remember: AI is a tool created by humans, our “booster.” Your goal should be to learn to harness it, not resist it or be controlled by it. By continuously updating yourself, you are likely to avoid being replaced by AI.