“AI is taking our jobs!” - It seems to be a growing fear around the world. However, it is not a new idea.
In A World Without Work by Daniel Susskind [1], the author explores the notion that automation will leave us in a world without work. He talks about times in the past when these fears were raised (notably during the Industrial Revolution) and contrasts the projected outcomes with reality. Some jobs were lost; others created.
Further, the author poses 3 potential outcomes of AI: social and economic evolution, utopia, mayhem. The first outcome is akin to past experiences, when society was revolutionized by technological innovation but didn’t leave us jobless. The second outcome is the optimist’s outlook that sees our world transforming into heaven on earth: all the work gets done and no one breaks a sweat (except maybe the robots). The last outcome is the realization of the fear of the pessimist: the dystopian future upon which numerous science-fiction stories have been based.
Susskind also forwards another potential cause for our unease: many believe that work ethic is the only source of meaning and purpose. Many people identify themselves, first and foremost, by their careers and occupations. If such people lost their jobs to automation, they may feel as though they are left without purpose. Perhaps that may be a greater cause for concern.
These are real concerns we must come to terms with very soon because the robots are already here.
Frankly, we need the robots. As David Berreby of National Geographic notes [2], many employers across various industries have voiced a similar reason: “We’re giving tasks to robots because we can’t find people to do them.”
The current rate of automation and the jobs that robots are now capable of doing may spook some, especially when people like Elon Musk (famous for his fear of an AI apocalypse) talk about factory automation nearing ‘Alien Dreadnought’ phase.
Some industry leaders believe that perspectives may be shifting. Derek Smith, a manager at construction firm Mortenson that’s been hiring robots, says “Operators will say things like, Oh, hey, here come the job killers, but after they see that the robot takes away a lot of repetitive work and they still have plenty to do, that shifts pretty quickly.” The reality is that robots today, although very capable, are still not as adaptable as humans. They can be indecisive about seemingly simple decisions.
Robots aren’t just filling in at labour-intensive constructions sites. Maja Matarić, a computer scientist and roboticist at the University of Southern California, develops “socially assistive robots”: machines that do social support rather than physical labor. She says “We’re not replacing caregivers, we’re filling a gap. Grown-up children can’t be there with elderly parents. And the people who take care of other people in this country are underpaid and underappreciated. Until that changes, using robots is what we’ll have to do.”
Evidently, there are strong economic motivations for automation. Robots don’t require breaks or vacations; they don’t need insurance or benefits; and they don’t need HR departments to manage them. Furthermore, governments encourage automation with tax breaks while raising the cost of hiring employees by enacting stronger labour laws. Berreby notes that “roboticists dream of machines that make life better, but companies sometimes have incentives to install robots that don’t.” This trend, if left untouched, has the potential of leading to Susskind’s mayhem outcome by concentrating power in the hands of few industry leaders that will increasingly own all the labour of the world.
I believe there can be a positive outcome of automation, perhaps a happy medium between societal revolution and utopia.
[1] https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/jan/09/world-without-work-david-susskind-review [2] https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2020/09/the-robot-revolution-has-arrived-feature/