It's a bit more expensive. It's not the end of the world. Production will likely increase if the demand is consistent.
> What about diverting funding from much more useful and needed things?
And who determines that? People put there money where they want to. People think AI will provide value to other people and those people will, therefore, pay money for AI. So the funding that AI is receiving is directly proportional to how useful and needed people think AI is. I disagree, but I'm not a dictator.
> What about automation of scams, surveillance, etc?
Technology makes things easier, including bad things. This isn't the first time this happened and it won't be the last. It also makes avoiding those things easier though but that usually lags a bit behind.
> I can keep going.
Please do because it seems like you're grasping at straws.
What about diverting funding from much more useful and needed things?
What about automation of scams, surveillance, etc?
I can keep going.
There are plenty of reasons to hate on AI beyond hype.