Tag: inequality

Choosing AI’s Impact on the Future of Work

Choosing AI’s Impact on the Future of Work

(Illustration by Hugo Herrera)

In November 2022, OpenAI grabbed headlines by releasing ChatGPT, and “generative AI” became a term used in households around the world. According to Open AI CEO Sam Altman , “A lot of people working on AI pretend that it’s only going to be good; it’s only going to be a supplement; no one is ever going to be replaced.” But, he adds, “jobs are definitely going to go away, full stop.” Two major labor strikes this year, by the Writers Guild of America and the actors union (SAG-AFTRA), have helped focus attention on the threat […]

Tech was supposed to take everyone’s job. We’re still working. What happened?

Tech was supposed to take everyone's job. We're still working. What happened?

Lots of people are worried AI is going to take a bunch of jobs.

The fear that new tech will replace workers has been common throughout history.

And yet here we all are, still with jobs to do. For decades, there have been fears that new technology was about to wipe out a generation of workers.The ATM was supposed to wipe out bank tellers. Spreadsheets were meant to wipe out bookkeepers. Robots were going to make humans redundant in manufacturing.And yet, here we are in 2023, with unemployment in the US at 3.8%, and an estimated 9.6 […]

How AI can become pro-worker

How AI can become pro-worker

While digital technologies have undoubtedly created new goods/services and boosted productivity in some activities (e.g. Brynjolfsson and McAfee 2015), there is also evidence that productivity gains from these technologies have sometimes fallen well below expectations (e.g. Acemoglu et al. 2016). Either way, over the past 40 years, waves of digital technologies – including personal computers, numerically controlled machinery, robotics, and office automation – have increased inequality. This is both because some of these technologies, such as personal computers, have been highly complementary to more educated workers (Autor et al. 1998, Autor et al. 2003, Goldin and Katz 2008), and […]

The dawn of domestic robots could dramatically cut gender inequality when it comes to household work

The dawn of domestic robots could dramatically cut gender inequality when it comes to household work

Robot vacuum cleaners are already a feature in some homes. Daniel Krason / Shutterstock Domestic work is vital for society to function. Meals need to be cooked, clothes and homes cleaned, and people need to be cared for. These tasks take time and, generally speaking, are not shared equally within households.

Some of these tasks are now becoming automated. This could benefit gender equality, but we also need to monitor some of the risks.

Women continue to do more unpaid domestic work than men in most households. Yet the extent of gender inequality when it comes to domestic work varies between […]

The Rise of the Robots: What Does it Mean for Jobs?

The Rise of the Robots: What Does it Mean for Jobs?

The Rise of the Robots In recent years, there has been a significant rise in the use of robots and automation in various industries. From manufacturing and agriculture to healthcare and customer service, robots are becoming increasingly prevalent in the workplace. While this technological advancement promises increased efficiency and productivity, it also raises important questions about the future of employment. In this article, we will explore the implications of the rise of robots and automation on jobs, both the challenges and opportunities it presents, and how individuals and society can adapt. The Robot Revolution: A Brief Overview

Robots […]

What the Luddites Can Teach Us about AI

What the Luddites Can Teach Us about AI

Think the Luddites were technophobes? Think again. Credit: The Luddites did not hate technology—but they did fight the way it was used to exploit humans. Full Transcript

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Sophie Bushwick: Exciting new technology is on the rise, doing the same work that humans can but faster and more cheaply. That’s great news for the people rich enough to buy these machines, but it’s disrupting the lives and livelihoods of less powerful workers. And some of those workers are ready to fight back.I’m talking, of course, about the Luddites, the 19th century textile workers known for […]

Piotr Lewandowski: Automation and Income Inequality in Europe (Online)

Piotr Lewandowski: Automation and Income Inequality in Europe (Online)

FBK-IRVAPP is pleased to invite you to the following seminar: Automation and Income Inequality in Europe .

With the participation of Piotr Lewandowski (IBS). Joint with: Karina Doorley (ESRI, TCD, IZA), Jan Gromadzki (WU Vienna, IZA, IBS), Dora Tuda (ESRI, TCD), Philippe Van Kerm (LISER, University of Luxembourg)

The seminar is held in English. Abstract We study the effects of robot penetration on household income inequality in 14 European countries between 2006–2018, a period marked by the rapid adoption of industrial robots. We establish that, similarly to the U.S., automation reduced relative hourly wages and employment of more exposed demographic […]

ETHICAL IMPLICATIONS OF AUTOMATION ON LABOR MARKETS

ETHICAL IMPLICATIONS OF AUTOMATION ON LABOR MARKETS

ETHICAL IMPLICATIONS OF AUTOMATION ON LABOR MARKETS

Ethical Implications of Automation on Labor Markets

Introduction The rapid advancement of automation and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies has sparked widespread discussions about their potential impacts on labor markets across various industries. While automation promises increased efficiency, reduced costs, and enhanced productivity, it also raises significant ethical concerns that need careful consideration. This article delves into the ethical implications of automation on labor markets and explores the challenges and potential solutions. Impact on Jobs and Employment One of the most significant ethical dilemmas posed by automation is the potential displacement […]

Exposure to automation explains religious declines

Exposure to automation explains religious declines

Significance

The rise of working robots and artificial intelligence (AI) is changing how humans work and live. Many studies have now examined the economic impact of automation on unemployment, income inequality, and trade. However, far less research has considered the broader cultural implications of robotics and AI. Here, we show that exposure to robots and AI explains religious declines across national cultures, regions within a nation, members of a community, and employees in an organization. These effects hold controlling for wealth, SES, exposure to science, political conservatism, and other technological advances. Our findings suggest that the rise of automation […]

Unregulated AI Will Worsen Inequality, Warns Nobel-Winning Economist Joseph Stiglitz

Unregulated AI Will Worsen Inequality, Warns Nobel-Winning Economist Joseph Stiglitz

US economist and recipient of the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences Joseph E. Stiglitz, photographed in Paris, September 2022. Credit: For the first time since the 1960s, Hollywood writers and actors are on strike concurrently. One of the joint movement’s inspirations is generative artificial intelligence—the term for programs that produce humanlike text, images, audio and video more quickly and cheaply than artists. The strikers fear studios’ use of generative AI tools will replace or devalue human labor. This is a reasonable worry: one report suggests that thousands of jobs have already been lost to AI , while another estimates […]