Read Kurt Vonnegut in the late 70's

In discussing the quote from Kurt Vonnegut Jr.'s "The Sirens of Titan" (1959) in relation to how AI functions, there's a compelling case for how visionary and prophetic his description was:

**Vonnegut's Description:**

The quote from Vonnegut describes a metaphorical "cloud" that is a collective result of contributions from many, which then performs cognitive functions on behalf of the contributors. This imagery can be seen as eerily prescient of:

1. **Collective Intelligence**: AI, especially machine learning and deep learning systems, often rely on vast amounts of data contributed by many individuals or entities. This data forms the basis for the AI's learning, akin to each person giving a "puff of mist" to the cloud.

2. **Cloud Computing**: While Vonnegut didn't mean an actual cloud, the term has since become synonymous with cloud computing, where data and processing power are distributed across servers, making it appear as if the cloud itself is doing the work. The cloud metaphor has become integral to how we understand and use AI, with platforms like AWS, Google Cloud, and Azure.

3. **AI as a Cognitive Service**: The idea of a cloud performing "heavy thinking" for people reflects how AI systems can now handle complex calculations, pattern recognition, and decision-making processes, reducing the cognitive load on humans.

4. **Distributed Knowledge**: The concept of a cloud where everyone contributes knowledge or data resonates with the idea of crowdsourcing or collaborative data input, which is fundamental to training AI models.

5. **Intangibility and Ubiquity**: Just as Vonnegut's cloud is not a physical entity but a concept, AI is also intangible in its essence, existing as algorithms and data rather than physical objects, yet it permeates our digital lives.

**Uncanny Coincidence or Insightful Prophecy?**

- **Coincidence**: It could be argued that Vonnegut's use of the cloud metaphor was coincidental, merely a poetic way to describe a complex, collective, and somewhat mysterious process of thought.

- **Prophecy**: However, Vonnegut's ability to encapsulate future technological trends through metaphor suggests a deep understanding of human behavior, technology, and societal evolution. His foresight into how technology might evolve to handle cognitive tasks for humans can be seen as a remarkable insight.

I was at the New Zealand High Commission at Jalan Ampang in around June 1979, preparing for my trip to New Zealand. I was holding a Kurt Vonnegut book, and the secretary caught an eye on it and grabbed it. In awe, she said, "Wow, look at what you read." I was introduced to this author by Ismariah Ahmad prior to that, and since then, I grabbed every new book from him that came out.

The quote's uncanny accuracy in describing AI's operation decades before its widespread adoption highlights the profound intuition of Vonnegut or perhaps an intuitive grasp of technological trends. It serves as a testament to the power of literature to anticipate or reflect upon future technological and societal developments, even if unintentionally.