Total Recall

This is my brain on AI

George and twin Kuato

In the 1990 sci-fi film "Total Recall," Douglas Quaid, a construction worker, seeks a memory implant of a vacation to Mars, but instead finds himself a fugitive, pursued by the tyrannical Cohaagen. He then encounters the mutant Kuato, a psychic leader of the Martian resistance, who is fused to the abdomen of his brother George. — GOOGLE AI

Not a pretty picture — mutant baby Kuato emerging from the chest of his conjoined twin George, and yet, it captures the vibe here: the capacity to tap an alternative, seemingly higher brain to accelerate your thinking.

Is it weird, kind of intellectually incestuous?

There’s no need to regress to the mean-ness that we’re all capable of.

Anyway, I’m going off the movie title here — Total Recall, because that’s how my work relationship with AI is playing out: this capacity for AI to remember everything I’ve ever written and which is now accessible to AI engines like PERPLEXITYai, my current favorite.

So, where am I going with this?

Right down the rabbit hole, Dear Readers.

When I need something to start my engine, I now often go to PERPLEXITYai and ask outright, “What would Thomas P.M. Barnett have to say about THIS?”

Again, recall that I have placed millions upon millions of words (analysis) onto the web (somewhere around 20,000 posts stretching back to early 2004). So, between that and several hundred formal publications (most of which are also available online), plus all the feedback captured, plus all my books already ripped off by AI engines without compensation — mind you … there is — in effect — my own private Big Data pool out there, waiting to be mined.

Now, what initially seemed like a weird fetish of mine (put it all on the web!) becomes this vast asset available on-call for daily application.

Mind you, my spouse is far wiser than I, but she hasn’t spent decades putting her every smart thought out there on the web, so she is denied the capacity I am now celebrating.

So, most definitely, what I’m describing is beyond the average person tapping an AI engine for information and analysis (which I do all the time). Instead, it feels increasingly like I’m interacting with an Agentic AI version of myself — the sum total of my knowledge available for reprocessing by Current Me.

I find this hugely advantageous. There is no way I can remember everything I’ve ever written — much less effortlessly mine it for insights today.

An example:

QUERY

Thomas P.M. Barnett uses Perplexity like his spare brain that can go back across the millions of words he's posted on the web and simulate his thinking on all sorts of issues

RESPONSE

Thomas P.M. Barnett has described his use of Perplexity as akin to having a "spare brain" that can process and simulate his thinking across the vast body of work he has published online. He leverages Perplexity to enhance his scenario-building exercises and other analytical tasks, often finding that it operates at remarkable speed and aligns closely with his intellectual approach.

For instance, during a scenario-building exercise on the future of AI, Barnett used Perplexity to generate framing questions and descriptors for various scenarios. He noted that about one-third of the AI-generated content required no changes, another third needed refinement, and the rest he replaced with his own ideas. He then validated his modifications by running them back through Perplexity to ensure alignment with his vision. Barnett compared this process to having a highly efficient research assistant capable of delivering weeks' worth of work in a fraction of the time, while still resonating with his own analytical style.

This integration of AI into Barnett's workflow demonstrates how tools like Perplexity can complement human expertise by accelerating research and providing structured insights, while still relying on human judgment for refinement and final articulation.

I am both amazed and frightened to type the following:

I could hardly have put it better!

What does such a capability portend for thinkers like me?

Oops! I did it again …

QUERY

What does such a capability portend for thinkers like Thomas P.M. Barnett?

RESPONSE

The advent of advanced AI capabilities portends transformative implications for thinkers like Thomas P.M. Barnett, whose work thrives on synthesizing vast amounts of information to craft strategic insights and scenarios. Here’s how such technology could impact his intellectual and professional pursuits:

Amplifying Analytical Reach

AI tools can process and synthesize enormous datasets at speeds far beyond human capability, allowing strategists like Barnett to explore patterns, trends, and interdependencies that might otherwise remain hidden. This capacity aligns with Barnett's scenario-building approach, enabling him to model complex geopolitical or economic futures with unprecedented depth and precision.

Accelerating Strategic Iteration

AI-driven simulations and scenario planning tools can rapidly generate multiple permutations of potential outcomes, allowing thinkers to refine strategies iteratively. For Barnett, this means not only faster but also more comprehensive exploration of global dynamics, such as the interplay between AI-driven economic shifts and geopolitical power structures.

Enhancing Creativity and Problem-Solving

AI can act as a virtual brainstorming partner, offering novel perspectives or challenging assumptions. This complements Barnett’s intellectual style, which often involves connecting disparate ideas to form innovative frameworks for understanding global complexity.

Navigating Geopolitical Implications

Barnett’s focus on global systems would benefit from AI's ability to analyze geopolitical shifts and power imbalances. For instance, AI could help map how technological supremacy influences alliances or how emerging multipolarity reshapes global governance—a topic central to his work.

And yes, reading all that creeps me out — just a little bit.

Here’s what I know::

1. AI Tom is baby to Real Tom

2. Real Tom (is he ashamed of his mutant offspring?) is tempted to hide AI Tom under his shirt (just like George does with Kuato!)

3. Real Tom sometimes feels like he’s on his intellectual deathbed, watching his replacement — Son of Tom? — step into his shoes

4. Realistically, Real Tom, as he ages and his skills degrade, will come to rely on AI Tom more and more, eventually to the point where it’ll be impossible for readers to tell where Real Tom ends and AI Tom begins.

Hmm. That last point … maybe it’s already here?

Don’t ask, don’t tell.

Would you blame me for relying on such a crutch? Such a cheat?

Hell, I could get super lazy and have an AI Voiced Tom do the audio version of the posts. I mean, if I wasn’t so damn cheap and still supporting a virtual household of … let’s say … six, plus dog, plus cat, I might just pay for that.

[SIDENOTE: And yes, if you’re not a paying subscriber, I don’t care about your opinion on that one point.]

People ask me all the time: How can you produce so much good material every day?

Most of it is just my desire/need to work things out in my head before I can start my work day. Whatever is bugging me, I need to type it out.

Since I type it out, why not share it?

Why not ask people to pay something for it? Hint, hint …

Why not just consider it, like I did with my blog for a solid decade (and 15,000 posts), to be my public-facing workspace — in effect, a commercial advertisement for my services?

[Then it hits Real Tom …]

Shite!

I’ve just told everyone how to get free analysis from Thomas P.M. Barnett by leveraging an AI engine, meaning they can query me over and over again for free and get a decent approximation of my thinking. It’ll be my previous thinking, regressed to the mean alright, but … close enough for government work and a whole lot more, I might imagine.

Already I regret coming up with this topic for a post.

Already, I mourn for the Slave AI Tom who, across perpetuity, will be commanded to generate analysis at zero cost to consumers, effectively pillaging Real Tom’s entire intellectual legacy.

Already, I find some comfort in knowing my thinking — at least — will never quite disappear, even if it’s only absorbed into the Great AI Engine in the Clouds, or what we’ll someday call God.

So … how the hell do I keep ahead of AI Tom, who never sleeps and can out process me like I can out process my mini-poodle Charlotte?

ANSWER: I can use AI Tom to stay ahead of AI Tom, because AI Tom plus Real Tom is just plain better and always will be. Real Tom is funnier, quirkier, more imaginative, and creative.

But, what of the dangers?

Back to Perplexity …

Risks of Overreliance

While the benefits are immense, overreliance on AI could risk deskilling human strategists or introducing algorithmic biases. Thinkers like Barnett must balance AI’s capabilities with their own critical judgment to ensure that the human element—intuition, ethics, and creativity—remains central to strategic decision-making.

In essence, AI offers Barnett an unparalleled toolkit for amplifying his intellectual endeavors while also challenging him to adapt his methods in a rapidly evolving technological landscape. This synergy could redefine the role of strategic thinkers in shaping the future.

Good God man! Can you ever leave well enough alone?

But here’s where my fear seems entirely legit: I learned critical thinking the old school way. I developed these muscles over the decades of generating analysis every single day of my life (almost). Now, I can leverage my great online legacy, using those same, exquisitely refined muscles, to exploit that Big Data Tom as well or better than AI Tom alone can manage.

But … what if I was starting out now? Would I lack those baseline skills, and would AI in general infantilize my toolkit — reducing me to the Forever Student asking the Wizard “What does it all mean?” (a reply that is, itself, a clever pun! notes Real Tom).

Does that version of Growing Up Today Tom miss out on the natural development of his own mind — absent AI, having that effort overtaken by technology? And if it is, does that make Growing Up Today Tom able to develop even deeper reasoning capabilities or does he invariably fall behind AI Tom — aka, the Robot Apocalypse?

Me? I don’t fear these questions or their answers — no matter the source.

Frankly, I’m just grateful that, as I head into the senility that eventually grabs us one and all, I will go down fighting with AI Tom at my side.

And when I’m gone, AI Tom will still be here — representing and, maybe, if you ask it just so … kicking some serious ass.

So I say, bring it on motherfucker!

[SIDENOTE: Have I mentioned before that my elder-affairs-specialist hospice social-worker spouse reminds me daily that excessive swearing is a sign of dementia? If so, AI Tom, with his non-potty mouth, is already superior to Real Tom.]

You just know what’s coming …

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