- Aaryaveer Kochhar, a 12-year-old chess prodigy, spoke on AI's future at TEDx Hong Kong
- He compared AI to a lock and humans as the key to unlock its full potential
- Kochhar warned overusing AI may hinder human creativity and natural thinking
A young chess prodigy from New Delhi took centre stage at Soho House Hong Kong on Sunday (Aug 23), delivering a rousing speech on the future of artificial intelligence (AI). Aaryaveer Kochhar, 12, who made history in 2023 when the Johns Hopkins Centre For Talented Youth (CTY) named him one of the "world's brightest" students at just nine years old, likened AI to a lock, whilst describing humans as the essential key needed to unlock the technology's full potential.
Kochhar was speaking alongside five other student speakers from around the world at an independently organised TEDx event. Under the theme "Taking the Wheel: Future Gen's Roadmap," the speakers, aged 12 to 21, delivered talks on the issues that define their generation: AI, social disconnection, digital addiction, and the art of navigating an uncertain future.
Rather than fearing AI, Kochhar argued that human development is the missing key to unlocking the technology's true potential.
"From where I stand, we are the key. And AI is the lock," said Kochhar. "Every lock has the capability to do two things - it can shut a door, or expose an entirely new world. When humans overuse AI, it locks away human development, creativity, curiosity, imagination, and overpowers our natural ways of thinking and common sense."
Kochhar, a rising FIDE-rated chess player and an aspiring mathematician, said AI keeps us locked when people outsource their thinking process to the machines.
"It is not about the technology. It is about us. The key has always been, and will always remain in human hands. It depends on whether WE decide to lock away or unlock human development."
Kochhar explained his position from his chess and mathematics lens, using his 1+1 analogy. The youngster stated that a person solving 1+1 without AI would use his brain, ask questions, make mistakes and eventually learn.
"He is confident in his intelligence. He becomes intelligent. By working out how to solve 1+1, he learns the tactics to solve 2+2, 3+3, the concepts of multiplication, division, so on and so forth," he said.
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Use AI To Extend Thinking
However, a person solving the same problem using AI would be prone to the technology's hallucinations, and even if the answer delivered is right, they would not have learned anything.
"Firstly, the very obvious problem that AI can malfunction. It is very capable of giving us the wrong answer. But the real danger is that it gives us the right answer. You become dependent on it handing you out the answers without thinking on your own.You lose confidence in your own intelligence. You do not learn," said Kochhar.
As for chess, Kochhar said using AI to analyse mistakes was better than simply asking leading chess engines to simply devise the next chain of moves.
"I am not saying that AI is a bane. I am saying that in order for it to be a boon, it must be used correctly by humans. Use AI to extend your thinking - not replace it," said Kocchar.
