AI and machine learning won’t create massive job losses in the foreseeable future, but some societal issues do come to mind.
There’s a perception of what artificial intelligence and machine learning mean to the breadth of the workforce: Truck drivers, middle managers, factory workers, even the programmers who teach the machines, all destined to unemployed years spent sprawled on the couch, watching soap operas, eating pizza, and swilling beer.
Granted, some out there might think that’s a mighty fine way to live out their years. But don’t call Dominos yet.
While all of us have thoughts about what AI means to the workplace, MIT assembled a panel of five experts who are close to the action, including several who build intelligent systems. They spoke at the MIT Sloan CIO Symposium in Cambridge, Mass., last week, on a panel discussion entitled “Putting AI to Work.”
There were four key takeaways:
- Yes, the advances in technology will cost some people their jobs, as has happened with most tech breakthroughs over the centuries.
- Yes, some new jobs will be created, although it’s not clear what the bulk of them will look like.
- No, machines won’t replace most people, but they will augment those workers, helping them to work better.
- Yes, we need some societal changes to deal with what technology brings to the workplace.
