"AI" Is "Ruin"

Genesis Chapter 12 tells of Abram’s flight “from the land of [his] kinfolk,” Haran, to Canaan, where he pitched “his tent with Bethel to the west and Ai to the east.”

Upon reading the name of the second city, I thought, Ai. Huh. AI!

My next stop was ChatGPT to find out if the name of the city had any significance in Hebrew. This is from ChatGPT’s response to my query:

The word עַי (‘Ai) is related to the Hebrew root ע–י–ה (‘-y-h), which carries the connotation of “ruin” or “heap of ruins”.

Thus, עַי can be interpreted to mean:
• “Ruin”
• “Desolation”
• “A heap” or “pile (of rubble)”

Um, WOW! I’ll let each of you decide upon your own interpretation of this.