Age of AI

For many decades, as technology has grown more and more vital to the world, Artificial Intelligence has always seemed to spark a bit of fear in humans. With movies like Ex Machina, mEgan and the Matrix, people have always been grossly fascinated with the thought of robots and technology taking over the world. The In the Age of AI film, I realized that the danger of AI is not within robots gaining consciousness and striving to be evil, but in many other areas. Areas that are clear and present currently. The thing that strikes me most is the robots that are (unconsciously) taking away human jobs. This film has so much good information to offer, but I will be focusing on this shocking problem.
 

As the video stated, the standard of living had dropped 15% due to automation when it was filmed, now it is most likely higher. This statistic was shocking to me. Through my own research, I discovered that automation in the workplace has caused 50-70% of the decrease in wages since 1980. The loss of a job is generally extremely tough on a person, but when the loss is out of ones control and unavoidable, the effects are even greater. Its almost as though being replaced by a human would be less striking than a machine. People who are in the situations face severe depression that often results in suicide, so death rates grow alongside unemployment. These people often have families to provide for that they no longer can, and the reach is broader than you may think.

This unemployment spreads throughout clerical work, receptionists, cashiers, insurance workers, HR, and even Wall street. The reach of this impact is much scarier to me than a talking doll (looking at you, mEgan). But the scariest part about this is the way it will only continue to grow, and it is ultimately a human issue. The film discusses this coming down too capital VS labor. The capital here is AI. These machines are so easily replacing humans due to their speed and efficiency, also known as their ability to make companies more money. Due to this issue, the middle and lower classes begin to plummet, as the upper class has a growth spurt.