The World Economic Forum (WEF) has suggested the world is in the midst of its “Fourth Industrial Revolution” with automated technologies already beginning to drive innovation and business growth. Even further, a recent report by Deloitte claimed that more than a third (35%) of existing jobs in the United Kingdom could be replaced by computers. Is it plausible that computers could automate manual tasks as well as humans?
Today, companies already heavily rely on robotics and intelligent automation. Whether it’s airline check-in desks, self-service check-outs, or vehicle assembly lines, machine automation and learning is already beyond manufacturing; it is in society.
Undoubtedly, the biggest talking point about an era of machine automation is the potential loss of jobs. The WEF predicts that robotic automation could result in 15 developed nations seeing five million people lose their jobs by the next decade. However, what’s rarely reported is the number of new job openings created by automated technologies.
The big data industry alone created 58,000 new jobs a year between 2012 and 2017, while automation technology as a whole created 3.5 million new positions between 2001 and 2015 — a net employment gain.
Instead of viewing machine automation as a negative, it should be viewed as an opportunity. Robotics is, in fact, sparking a transition of labor from low-skilled manufacturing roles to high-skilled labor. The ability to develop, maintain, and enhance these machines and technologies will be considered a niche role and governments must act fast to create training environments for current low-skilled workers to retrain and enhance their skills for future vacancies.
This is no doubt easier said than done, but it is certainly a challenge that is not going to go away for any leading political party.
Turning back to the excitement of artificial intelligence and machine learning and what the future holds for society, it’s worth pointing out that it is already enhancing everyday life, with quantum leaps made all the time in terms of what’s possible. You only need to consider the progress that’s been made in terms of speech recognition to see what is possible in the coming years and decades.
The likes of Apple’s Siri and Amazon Echo’s Alexa have made voice-response the norm for many. Meanwhile, breakthroughs in image recognition have enhanced far more than just “fad” social media apps; medics claim technology will soon enable computers alone to rapidly read X-rays and CT and MRI scans faster than radiologists have ever been able to, potentially helping a swifter, less invasive diagnosis of life-threatening diseases such as cancer.
Nevertheless, the world’s developed nations must work hard to develop a broader vision for how to harness and maximize automated technologies. Without such a framework, insecurities and uncertainties regarding the role of machine learning will always remain. Businesses at the forefront of tech innovation must also continue to work hand-in-hand with officials to instill confidence and belief in an automation-influenced economy.
Although automated technology should not be viewed as a direct replacement for human expertise and craft, it can, however, augment our processes to redefine what productivity will look like for generations to come.
Shift Frequency © 2017 – Are We Entering an Era of Machine Automation?