UBI when??
I don't want to go into too much detail – a couple of my coworkers use reddit and I really don't want to risk being identified. And by the sounds of things, I'll need to be super careful about holding onto my job for as long as possible now, because apparently it won't exist in the next few years.
Or, the more likely case, the value of my labor will be so driven down by lack of demand as companies use AI to do my job instead.
Basically, I was in a meeting today, and one of my coworkers brought up the topic of AI and automation, and how it was improving really rapidly in this particular field. The particular field that happens to crossover with my skillset and make up about 80% of my job. They were all getting excited about how amazing it is that technology has progressed so far and so fast.
Meanwhile, I'm just sat there wondering if anyone realizes that what they are talking about, essentially, is my skillset becoming obsolete.
Now, I just want to caveat this by saying that I am in a really fortunate position at the minute: I've been planning to go back to school and change careers, and I've managed to figure out a way to do this that is not going to be financially ruinous.
But what if I was not in this situation (like most people would be)? What's the plan when our jobs are obsolete because AI is doing most of the work? Are people going to be compensated when they have to retrain because AI has made their job obsolete?
And I know that I am not the first person this has happened to, and I won't be the last. My coworkers are laughing now – possibly their jobs will go the same way eventually. But I just have to wonder – just what are we actually meant to do when our jobs no longer exist?