HISTORY
AND HISTORIANS IN ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AGE. OPPORTUNITIES, CHALLENGES AND
RISKS.
Ph.D.hab.Constantin
HLIHOR[1]
Abstract. Artificial intelligence has become a part of our
society. Machine learning tools are playing a major role in History classes and
historical research. Large language models such as GPT-3 and ChatGPT are able
to generate compelling, non-plagiarized texts in response to simple natural
language inputs, thus providing students with an opportunity to produce
high-quality written assignments with minimal effort. In a similar vein, these
tools are likely to revolutionize historical studies, enabling historians and
other professionals who deal with texts to rely on AI-generated intermediate
work products, such as accurate translations, summaries, chronologies and
statistical analysis. But in the present day, large language models fail at key
tasks that historians hold in high regard. They are structurally incapable of
telling the truth and tracking pieces of information through layers of texts.
What's more, they lack ethical self-reflexivity. Therefore, for the time being,
the writing of academic history will require human agency. IA is a necessary
tool for both teachers and scholars in their work. With a constrain: to pay attention
to the challenges and risks that IA can generate.
Keywords: Artificial intelligence, ChatGPT
and historical narrative, truth, fake, deep fake, risks and challenges
DOI 10.56082/annalsarscihist.2024.1-2.71
