Find out what would have happened in Latin America if the Europeans had not arrived, according to Amnesty International

History cannot be changed, but doubts always arise about what would have happened if something in particular had not turned out a certain way. For example, what would have happened to America if the Spanish, Portuguese, and Dutch had not crossed the Atlantic, bringing with them the cultural and social change that made us the society of today? The answer has been solved by historians in different ways, but artificial intelligence has its own version.

In this experiment, we consulted Gemini, ChatGPT, and Copilot, three chatbots that rely on their knowledge According to the data they were trained on and the information found on the Internet, there are certain insights for historians.

Although the Vikings arrived in America long before Christopher Columbus, the entire colonization process did not take place until after the Spanish arrived in 1492.Which made Latin America part of the Spanish Kingdom and opened the doors to the arrival of other countries such as Portugal, England, the Netherlands, and France.

Since that date, everything has changed in our region, and the civilizations that existed began to disappear. This is a point that artificial intelligence addresses very strongly, because had it not been for the arrival of the Europeans, these societies would have continued their path.And the development of different technologies and constructions, and perhaps a way to move outside the continent.

“Indigenous civilizations in America, such as the Aztecs, Incas, and Mayas, would continue to develop independently, without European influence. This would have led to greater cultural diversity in the region, as different empires and societies competed and cooperated with each other,” says ChatGPT.

However, this does not mean that no other civilization reached the continent. Gemini believes that it is possible that empires such as the Chinese or Japanese have the possibility of traveling to our region, although they treat it less aggressively and respect the indigenous culture.

“If Europeans had not reached America, other powers, such as China or Japan, may have explored the continent and established their own colonies. These colonies could have had a similar impact to the European colonies, introducing new diseases, technologies, and cultures. However, it is also possible that These powers would have taken a more respectful approach to indigenous cultures, which would have resulted in less negative impact.

Gemini also highlights that although each of the cultures that existed in America at that time was constantly evolving, It was likely that “it was stagnant and could not advance at the same pace as other regions of the world.”

Other aspects that had no impact were: the arrival of Christianity as the dominant religion, slower technological development, greater demographic growth, greater presence of indigenous languages, and in general, a very different social structure.

With this panorama in mind, we also asked these chatbots whether it was possible that indigenous cultures of that time had reached Europe, in a process of discovery that contradicts what happened historically.

“If we consider the possibility that pre-Columbian civilizations developed advanced navigation and exploration techniques, We can imagine a scenario in which Latin America sends expeditions to Europe“It could not have been a 'discovery' in the full sense of the word, because Europe was already known territory to other civilisations,” said the co-pilot, who highlighted that it could not have been a “discovery” in the full sense of the word.

Although the central question is what would have happened in Latin America, Europe would also have been severely affected if it had not reached our continent. This could have happened, according to ChatGPT:

• The arrival of gold, silver, and other resources from Latin America to Europe was an important factor in European economic prosperity during the colonial period.
• The arrival of foods such as corn, potatoes, and tomatoes from Latin America contributed greatly to population growth in Europe. Without these foods, European populations would have suffered from reduced growth rates and malnutrition problems.
• The introduction of new plants and crops from Latin America, along with indigenous civilizations' knowledge of agriculture and medicine, influenced technological development in Europe.