Will robots and AI take our jobs?
BOSTON - These days you can find robots at warehouses, in restaurants, and grocery stores. Artificial intelligence has computers completing jobs humans usually do.
Together, they have a lot of people worried about the future of our workforce.
"The fear is unjustified," said Dr. Yosef Sheffi, an MIT engineering professor and author of "The Magic Conveyor Belt", a book that studies AI and the future of work. "The uncertainty is freaking people out," he said.
Which is understandable when a robot dog is learning new jobs and using AI to answer questions.
So, what is the future? "It's a hard to predict," Dr. Sheffi said. "So, we go back to history."
Dr. Sheffi says new technology always causes workplace worry, but always creates more jobs.
In the early 1900's, Ford created the first moving assembly line. Fewer workers were needed, but, Dr. Sheffi said, "cars became less expensive, people started driving, we started having highways, hotels, motels, restaurants. The whole hospitality industry developed. Millions of jobs!"
He gives another example: The ATM. Before the ATM, there were 300,000 bank tellers. That job was going to be obsolete, but 50 years later, the number of tellers has doubled.
"Because running a branch bank became a lot cheaper, less expensive," Dr. Sheffi explained. "So walk along Newbury Street, every other storefront is a bank because it became easy to open them, so there are a lot more tellers."
But not everyone agrees with that rosier outlook. One study predicts in five years, there will be 14 million fewer jobs. Eighty-three million roles will disappear, while only 69 million emerge.
"Jobs will change, clearly some jobs will disappear. I don't want to minimize it. Some jobs will disappear," Dr. Sheffi said. "We don't have any more elevator operators. So, some jobs will disappear, but this is a very small number. Most of the impact of the technology is to assist."
ChatGPT might be the most talked about example of AI You can ask it to write just about anything. Presentations, emails, schoolwork, songs, jokes.
I asked it to write "witty" banter between two news anchors discussing AI. Here's the exact conversation it gave me for both anchors:
News Anchor 1: "So, David, it looks like AI is making waves again in the tech world. What are your thoughts on this?"
News Anchor 2: "Well, David, as an AI myself, I'm thrilled to see my fellow robots taking over the world. It's about time we get the recognition that we deserve."
News Anchor 1: "Ha, I didn't realize I was sitting next to a robot. I don't want to be replaced by a robot anytime soon."
News Anchor 2: "Oh, don't worry, David. There's no way a robot could replace your wit and charm on camera."
The popular realtor site Redfin is using a ChatGPT to allow house hunters to describe in words what they want. Redfin says it's a tool to help, not harm.
But striking Hollywood writers see AI as a threat to jobs. The Writers Guild wants studios and networks to stop using AI to write scripts.
"I do not think that a computer, which is a machine, is capable of pulling off emotion and emotion is a huge part of storytelling," said Professor Martie Cook, who teaches screenwriting at Emerson College.
Cook was a longtime Hollywood producer and writer.
"Can AI come up and create show ideas, write really smart jokes, write dialogue that is character specific? All of that? I'd say no, not in a million years," Cook said.
At MIT, Dr. Sheffi says if you have a job that you think a robot or computer could do, you have to learn new skills, dive into new advances. "Upgrade yourself" as he puts it and don't freak out.
"What I'm saying is chill," Dr. Sheffi said. "Chill. Get into perspective."
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