No. of Recommendations: 4
You can never tell. You really can’t predict what AI will destroy, or what new markets and services it will cause to be invented.
The effects on "jobs" of other technological advances were collateral damage. The stated intent of using AI systems is to put people out of work.
From the net sifter:
The stated purpose of using an AI system is to simulate human intelligence—such as learning, reasoning, perception, and problem-solving—to perform tasks more efficiently, accurately, and at a greater scale than humans. Generally, AI systems are employed to automate workflows, analyze vast amounts of data for insights, and act independently to achieve defined goals, thereby reducing human error and freeing up human labor for higher-level work.
For a lot of people, there is no "higher level work", due to lack of ability, skills, or education. With enough money, you can address the skills and education factors, but who would pay that bill? You can't fix an innate lack of ability. The administrative staff at the last several places I worked, would be incapable of the 50lb lift to qualify as an Amazon delivery van driver, for instance.
All the folks who bought in to the "knowledge worker" narrative of the 80s, and honed that skill set, just saw their futures go *poof*
from the net sifter:
The 1980s knowledge worker narrative represents a pivotal shift from industrial-era manufacturing to a "post-industrial" society, where power and productivity were derived from processing information rather than physical labor. This era established the "knowledge worker"—a term popularized by Peter Drucker—as a new elite class focused on careerism, leveraging computers (PCs, word processors) and managing information as their primary capital.
If I was still working, I would be in double jeopardy, because I was a "knowledge worker", delivering office furniture for other "knowledge workers".
Steve
