I often fall into the trap of assuming my own cognition is the universal standard.

Recently, I was talking to an elderly gentleman in Hong Kong about how AI could easily help him organize church scriptures, categorize daily documents, and handle basic clerical work. In my world, this is second nature type a few words, feed them to the AI, and engage in a dialogue as natural as breathing.

But I completely overlooked a fundamental reality: many older Hong Kongers don’t "type" Chinese. Those who do often use the complex Cangjie input method, and even then, they output in Cantonese. Their rhythm, word order, and vocabulary are simply not part of the "Standard Written Chinese" architecture.

Furthermore, Mandarin is a foreign landscape to them. Expecting them to use Pinyin or a Mandarin linguistic context to "converse with AI" isn't just about a learning curve; it’s a fundamental system incompatibility.

In that moment, I realized: it wasn't that they couldn't connect with AI; it was that I had mistaken my own operational habits for a "universal entryway."

This isn't a technical issue; it’s a cognitive gap.

We too easily stand at our familiar altitudes and underestimate the reality of having a different starting point. It’s like trying to force a cutting-edge OS onto an ancient hardware frame, it won't just run slowly; it will crash entirely.

Many seniors don't understand QR codes, can't navigate apps, and struggle with online bookings, payments, or forms. They aren't rejecting progress; they simply haven't been "caught" by the system. In this era of total digitalization, technology hasn't brought them convenience, it has manufactured obstacles.

Those of us who believe we are leading the way often focus solely on monetization, traffic, and speed. We forget that true civilization moves forward not by raising the threshold, but by seeing who is being locked out.

True needs are hidden in the places we take for granted. Progress isn't about inventing more features; it’s about the willingness to redesign the entrance for those the system has failed to reach.



—— 🎐 XC Scribbles · 壹佰貳拾捌 CXXVIII 🧩