The Future of Work in the Age of AI/Robots
Author:
TOH Wee Khiang
I have been following Boston Dynamics for many years, ever since they came up with the video of their Big Dog over a decade ago (https://lnkd.in/gP63eGke).
The idea of a swarm of Big Dogs with machine guns storming an enemy position while emitting a terrifying humming noise always struck me as a scene right out of Starship Troopers.
Fortunately, the company has gotten more press in recent years with its very human-like Atlas robot. The latest video below is quite amazing. Watch it.
Robots/AI are getting better all the time.
Soon, lots of unskilled labour jobs will be automated if employees are not prepared for the future. For a start, I think airport baggage handling can be done easily by the Atlas robot. It's just a matter of costs.
How can workers respond? Well, we need to start thinking of human augmentation. You will see a recurring theme I make that Humans+AI > Humans.
Can humans work alongside robots in baggage handling, construction, shipyards, car assembly etc.? Can workers be fitted with soft exoskeletons to help them carry heavier loads for longer?
I'm not pretending there are easy solutions, nor am I unaware of the difficulties in integrating robots into the workplace. But these ideas are not new and people have been working on them for a long time. I do believe we have now reached an inflection point in AI/robot adoption.
When tens of millions of people have used ChatGPT and said "Wow, that's something I can use NOW" - I think that's an inflection point.
Watch the clip at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-e1_QhJ1EhQ
