Artificial intelligence (AI) is causing us to think about the world of work in different ways, but it should be embraced and not feared, argues Jerome Pesenti, CEO at BenevolentTech, which is a part of UK tech ‘unicorn’ BenevolentAI. Pesenti used to be a VP at IBM Watson and is currently leading the UK government’s AI Review.
Despite the ongoing disagreements about what AI might look like, there one thing all agree on – that it is going to have a significant and lasting impact on our society. While Terminator’s Skynet is the first thing to come to some people’s minds when you say AI, these dramatic outlooks remain far from the reality we are facing as a society.
Technology is part of our history
The concern about AI’s impact on the workforce is one that comes up time and time again. But, take a step back, and you can see that this conversation is not new. We have a history and society already shaped by developments in technology and mechanics. Back in the 1800s, 80% of the US workforce was dedicated to farming, but with the creation of machines, societies have been able to take away certain manual tasks and improve productivity in the process. Now, in the US, less than 2% of the workforce is dedicated to farming, freeing people up for other roles within society....