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Don’t Panic: Here’s Why AI Won’t Replace You and What You Can Do About It
MIT Technology Review examined which workers suffer most when new technology arrives. They noted that while a rise in technology exposure is linked to a decline in employment for all categories of workers, the exposure of workers with a college degree increased over recent decades and was nearly on par with that of workers without a college degree.
It comes as no surprise that older workers are more affected by technology, with their wages growing 1.8 times more slowly over a five-year period than younger workers, and that those who have reached the top income tier within an exposed profession see their wages slow down by more than twice as much as average workers in the same occupation. The MIT researchers suggest that one way workers can protect themselves from future technologies is by cultivating interpersonal skills and being willing to constantly learn and adapt. They also suggest that policymakers could develop programs to subsidize training for employees who might soon be displaced.
The automation of factories has already decimated jobs in traditional manufacturing, and the rise of artificial intelligence is likely to extend this job destruction deep into the middle classes, with only the most caring, creative or supervisory roles remaining. — Stephen Hawking
