Writing for Forbes, research engineer Bryan Reimer examines how success can be measured as automated vehicles are introduced to our transportation system. “While automation may be the future,” writes Reimer, “the enabling technologies we are seeing today are pieces of a complex puzzle being assembled to build a picture of how automation will change the future of how we live and move.”
Prof. Julie Shah and Principal Research Scientist Andrew McAfee speak with Miles O’Brien of the PBS NewsHour about how robots can be used to augment human capabilities in the workplace. Shah explains that she is developing technology that enables robots to “integrate and work effectively with the person, so that they can accomplish the task together.”
Prof. David Autor speaks with Brendan Greeley, host of the Financial Times “Alphachat” podcast, about how trade and automation impact the economy and labor market. Autor emphasizes that the U.S. needs to “invest in people,” adding, “if you want to share the gains broadly...you need to find a way to bring people along.”
A Washington Post article by Prof. Erik Brynjolfsson and Research Affiliate Xiang Hui demonstrates how artificial intelligence is starting to have a positive impact on the U.S. economy by helping with such obstacles as lowering the language barrier to trade. Brynjolfsson and Hui explain that “human intelligence is needed to make sure it benefits the many, not just the few.”
Principal Research Scientist Andrew McAfee speaks with BBC Radio’s David Grossman about the impact that artificial intelligence could have on various aspects of our lives. McAfee predicts that AI will reinvent, not replace capitalism, and that “even if things become very, very cheap because of technological progress that doesn’t strike away at the pillars of the capitalist system.”
A study co-authored by Prof. Erik Brynjolfsson and graduate student Daniel Rock finds that specific tasks, not jobs, are likely to become automated, writes Joe McKendrick for Forbes. The researchers explain that, “machine learning technology can transform many jobs in the economy, but full automation will be less significant than the re-engineering of processes and the reorganization of tasks."
In an article for the Financial Times, Prof. Erik Brynjolfsson writes about his new research showing that advances in machine learning could help fuel a surge in productivity and economic growth around the world. Brynjolfsson writes that as machine learning systems develop, “we can have not only higher productivity growth, but also more widely shared prosperity.”
A new paper by Prof. Erik Brynjolfsson argues that machines and automation will replace specific tasks rather than entire jobs, writes Adi Gaskell for Forbes. As an example, Gaskell notes that there are 26 tasks associated with radiologists, and while “analyzing medical images is well suited to AI, interpersonal skills are currently not.”
Writing in The Atlantic, Amy Merrick describes Walmart's increasing reliance on the gig economy and automation, arguing that "the U.S. economy is tilting further toward jobs that give workers less market power." Merrick cites research by Prof. David Autor, who explains that “the concern should not be about the number of jobs, but whether those jobs are jobs that can support a reasonable standard of living.”
In a new working paper, Prof. Daron Acemoglu and his co-author argue that the rise in automation is linked to the aging of the blue-collar population. “The study shows that workers feeling the brunt of automation in lost jobs and lower wages are between the ages of 36 and 55. Those findings should make it easier for policy makers to track down the most affected workers—and help them survive the robot rush,” writes Ana Campoy for Quartz.
Speaking to Bloomberg’s Emily Chang and Selina Wang, Lecturer Luis Perez-Breva suggests that fear of AI stems from confusing it with automation. Perez-Breva explains that in his view, “we need to make better businesses that actually use this technology and AI to take advantage of the automation and create new jobs.”
Using recent analyses by Prof. Frank Levy, Eduardo Porter of The New York Times explores the notion that AI will eliminate jobs and negatively impact American politics. Prof. Daron Acemoglu suggests that with more employment options in large cities, the backlash “will be more muted than it was when trade took out the jobs of single-industry company towns.”
Writing for The New York Times, Thomas Edsall highlights research by Profs. Daron Acemoglu and David Autor examining how automation and trade impacted the 2016 presidential election. “The swing to Republicans between 2008 and 2016 is quite a bit stronger in commuting zones most affected by industrial robots,” explains Acemoglu. “You don’t see much of the impact of robots in prior presidential elections.”
In an article for The Wall Street Journal, Greg Ip highlights a new study by Prof. Erik Brynjolfsson and graduate student Daniel Rock that examines why advances in technology have not yet led to increases in productivity. Ip writes that, “the authors blame these lags on the cost and time it takes for businesses to adapt to new technologies.”
Writing for The Boston Globe, President L. Rafael Reif issues a call for allies to help address the changing nature of work in the age of automation. “Automation will transform our work, our lives, our society," writes Reif. "Whether the outcome is inclusive or exclusive, fair or laissez-faire, is up to us.”