Are robots coming to take our jobs?

Is Artificial Intelligence going to push millions into poverty?

People have a diverse response when asked about Artificial Intelligence. Some have a tendency to paint an apocalyptic picture of the future where automation displaces millions of jobs, renders people unemployed for good, and adds to already growing inequality.

On the other hand, there are those who are quite excited about the prospects of AI. These people are optimistic about a future where AI plays a growing role in the economy. They foresee a future of high productivity and increased efficiency which is central to a better future.

But are these two positions exactly right? And, what do the facts say?

So, let’s dive in, and have a deeper look into the challenges and opportunities presented to us by AI in the coming future.

Is AI a threat to your job?

Movies, TV shows and other segments of pop culture have instilled a sense of deep pessimism about Artificial Intelligence among the population. People are really concerned about their financial futures but we need to see if AI really is such a huge threat, as people consider it to be.

1. Unemployment Fears and the Future

There have indeed been several studies and researches that definitely seem to tell us of a gloomy future as far as the current state of our job market is concerned. To paraphrase a few:

• Oxford Economics predicts we might lose as many as 20 million manufacturing jobs globally by 2030.
• A World Economic Forum (WEF) report suggested that we might lose about 75-million jobs to AI by 2022.
• A study by McKinsey Global Institute says that the U.S alone might lose 20 to 25 percent of their jobs to AI in the near future.

As the above estimates suggest, there is genuine concern for the less-skilled population, and Artificial Intelligence (AI) is most likely to displace these jobs. But! That’s not the whole story because most of what these studies say doesn’t really make it to the mainstream media, thus sowing seeds of fear and anxiety – more on this in the next section.

2. Rise in Inequality

The second concern that people have is about how AI might exacerbate the already alarming rates of inequality that persist. If millions of people lose their jobs so quickly, it can only add to the problem of income and wealth inequality in the world.

3. Adaption Gap

As jobs are automated away, how will these newly unemployed people transition or find new jobs? They can’t learn skills required in the AI-economy overnight nor are they capable of switching to some other job because most of what they can do will be automated away, and that brings us to our third major concern which is the time that it will take to get these people back into the workforce.
The Other Side of the Story

1. New Jobs

The AI revolution will bring many new jobs and opportunities for people around the world. To quote a few studies:

• The World Economic Forum (WEF) study suggested that AI will contribute to 133 million new jobs by 2022, more than it will displace!
• McKinsey Global Institute says that we will witness a net positive growth rate for jobs in the US.
• ZipRecruiter found that AI created thrice the number of jobs that it displaced in 2018 alone.

These facts don’t quite often make the light of day in our popular discussions. So the future isn’t as dark as many predict it to be. When put in the right perspective, there is a lot of reason to remain hopeful about the future as there will be many jobs for the right people. You can find new jobs in AI today!

2. Improving Current Jobs

A key feature of AI has been how it has improved current jobs and elevated the performance of employees. Many industries have put AI to good use without having to fire employees. These technologies contribute to overall productivity, and also make the lives of employees easier and more efficient.

To cite an example, call center employees have AI-assistance available to them all the time, allowing them to fetch information quickly, and get things done faster. This is just one of many examples as to how AI and humans don’t necessarily always substitute each other.

3. Closing the Time Gap

Perhaps, the most important matter to address right now is the time gap that might occur when AI starts to replace vast swathes of the labor population, albeit gradually. So, here they need the assistance of the government and the society at large to train and prepare for an AI-dominated future because otherwise, it might take a lot of time and they might lose their jobs faster than they gain new ones.

The individuals likely-to-be effected should invest today on learning new skills for an AI-economy because we are likely to see a lot of new jobs for these new skills in the future which will also help close some of the increasing inequality that face most societies today.