There is no doubt that fears have arisen in the hearts of men in the area of loss of jobs to automation. This fears have their root in the fact that people are beginning to see AI replacing humanity instead of complimenting humanity in the labour market.
I once read a survey made by professor Noel Sharkey on this. He stated that over 49% of jobs are on the brink of being lost to automation.
We all know that this tech era is characterized mainly by industrial automation and robotic revolution; both of which rely on AI.
Is AI really a threat to humanity? Will it do more good than harm to the future of our jobs?
I'll answer this question with a trip down the history's memory lane.
Journey into history
Back in the pre-industrial era; in the area of farming for example, human labour was the major contribution then. And this was characterized by tedious work.
Farming was rather seen as "hell-in-a-cell", because of the stress involved.
This continued until the industrial revolution of 1900. Mechanical devices replaced human labour. With this replacements, no doubt, human jobs were lost, but did the output increase? The answer is an emphatic "YES".
With the invention of machines, farming was made easier with bigger output. "At the expense of human jobs?" you may ask. Well, that's the nature of revolution.
But the question is:
Is history set to repeat itself again with the evolution of AI and advanced technological revolution?
The truth is, AI has already started replacing humans in the labour market. But there's a way out, and one of them is the Universal Basic Income (UBI).
Review on UBI
This is a policy that has been proposed to compensate for the jobs lost to industrial automation. The principle is this:
A percentage of funds generated from the process of automation would be unconditional paid directly to all the country's citizens to even out the effect of job losses.
This funds are to be paid at a stipulated time.
A pilot system has also been put in place for testing, with Netherland and Finland taking a lead in this. 2000 citizens (selected randomly) will be the first to be used to test-run the entire system, for a period of 2 years.
The citizens will receive an average of €560 (still on review though) on a monthly basis. I think this is a welcome idea, as it will aid in alleviating poverty and also boosting productivity.
Tech revolution is inevitable; we just have to figure out a way to flow with it, not against it.
Tech Rules!!
Thanks for reading
References for reading: Ref1, Ref2, Ref3
Very interesting @samminator. Like you pointed out, the use of automation yielded more output. In as much as is a threat, we still need the services of human to operate these robot/machines.
Exactly, we still need the services of humans to operate them. But a time could come when these machines will run almost 100% on AI
We don't need a universal basic income. We might require certain things to be provided to us however, and the cost of some things to be subsidized. Many countries already have universal healthcare. A system to provide food and shelter as well could also be implemented. When you have your basic necessities taken care of, what else do you need? We could still work for things that we want, unless AI takes over literally every single job. We could become a society of mostly artists, artisans, and possibly technicians, at least until the AI's become capable of repairing and overseeing themselves. Or we could end up plugged into The Matrix as parts of a vast hive mind, and rewarded for our processing power. Perhaps with money, or even directly, by manipulating the pleasure centers of our brains. We could end up with sky scrapers of pleasure junkies being used as co-processors for our robot overlords.
Well said buddy. Thanks for dropping by
Technological progress is a double-edged sword, there are always positives and negatives.
Sure it is. But in my opinion, it has more advantages than disadvantages
Well they're the future, cost effective and more efficient to more companies nowadays.
We are already in the future
Very good post.
Thanks
I really like this article. I too have been writing posts about futurism and technology's impact on humanity. Take a look. Here are links to my two latest posts on this topic:
A.I. Computer writes REALLY CREEPY Christmas song. Terrifying!
https://steemit.com/tech/@shannonmccann/a-i-computer-writes-really-creepy-christmas-song-terrifying
“UFOs are Real” Says Former Manager of DOD's Aerospace Threat Program
https://steemit.com/science/@shannonmccann/ufos-are-real-says-former-manager-of-dod-s-aerospace-threat-program
More machines doing what men should do, means the future is here. Exactly what men had dread for a long time ago. But same men would oppose this ... The blow up might be more than job loss. But I think ideas could have been thought through before invention...