Is AI worse than humans?

Originally published on LinkedIn on March 23, 2026

There’s a plethora of chatter about the dangers of AI, including Super Bowl ads. Concerns range from social manipulation to trickery that can usurp humankind and autonomous weapons, operating without oversight.

I have some concerns, but they don’t center on nefarious AI taking over the world like an out-of-control, antagonistic HAL 9000. No doubt, someone could train a model to seek out and harm organizations’ or individuals’ digital existence, wreaking havoc with their data, financial underpinnings, reputation, and unimaginably more.

But cybercriminals have been doing that for years. And AI is a potential super weapon against these threats with the ability to tirelessly monitor, detect, and circumvent zillions of suspected attacks.

No. I’m afraid of humans. AI can potentially find the cause of the most esoteric ailments lickety-split, revolutionizing diagnostic medicine, which can be subverted by a healthcare executive. Recently, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) discontinued an asthma inhaler then collaborated with another medical provider to introduce a generic version at a significantly higher price. As a result, there was a shortage of the name-brand inhaler at a cost of $10 compared to $150 for the generic one.

With the generic inhaler being fifteen times more expensive, the outcome was a spike in asthma-related hospitalizations and ICU admissions. Pharmaceutical giant Mylan was equally greedy, increasing the cost of lifesaving EpiPens by nearly 500% over seven years.

The strife currently perpetrated around the world isn’t caused by a miscreant AI algorithm, but human leaders. And while AI can distribute misinformation and manipulate content and beliefs, it can also be used to refute, counteract, and educate. Propaganda, conspiracies, and bias aren’t new. They’re errant threads in the fabric of civilization.

AI, unlike physical beings, is ethereal. It’s the projection onto the curtain, controlled by the wizard behind the curtain, either to spread good or bad. The distrust isn’t in the AI learned models, but how they’re used.

Let’s hope the wizard of the future lean towards benevolence, integrity, and accountability.

*All incomplete sentences, grammatical mishaps, and bizarre though patterns are made by a human. The “wizard behind the curtain” was created by AI.