By Isabella Diaz
Artificial Intelligence is advancing, and it’s advancing fast. People are starting to be concerned about job displacement. Traditional jobs are being replaced by machines and AI. While AI is helpful and can make things easier sometimes, many employees are being affected by their replacements. An example of job displacement is manufacturing and assembly line jobs. This sector has been affected most by AI and machines. An example of this is companies like Tesla and Ford, where they use robots for assembly lines. A report by Mckinsey & Company says that up to 20 million manufacturing jobs worldwide could be done by robots by the year 2030.
Another sector that has been largely taken over by AI is customer service and support. Have you ever been on a website and seen a little chat box at the corner of the screen? Sometimes that is a real person you can ask questions to, but most of the time it is AI. Many websites and places like Amazon and Domino’s Pizza use AI to answer customer service questions and complaints. According to a 2020 report from the World Economic Forum, AI could possibly replace 85 million customer service jobs by 2025. Retail is another sector that has been significantly affected by AI. In almost every grocery store there are self checkout places. There is also not much need for cashiers and stock clerks because there are automatic inventory management tools. An example of a place that has had a lot of job losses because they introduced customer service and inventory tracking using AI is Walmart.
The transportation and delivery sector is also gradually being taken over by AI. Have you ever seen those cars that drive themselves? It’s almost scary to think that there are robots on the road that are driving around. Tesla and Waymo are developing vehicles that are probably going to replace delivery and taxi drivers’ jobs. Based on what the Trucking Association says, there are 3.5 million truck drivers in the U.S. All of those drivers could lose their jobs by being replaced by artificial intelligent cars that drive themselves.
AI is very helpful to our world in many ways. It answers our questions, creates pictures for us, and even drives us places. But we should also stop and think about the amount of people losing their jobs due to being replaced by AI. Imagine going into work one day to find a robot doing your jobs, and your boss telling you that you were let go because they found a robot replacement. That would not feel good and that’s what millions of people in the U.S felt when they lost their jobs. Yes, AI is helpful for many things, but some jobs don’t need to be replaced by it. AI can create beautiful pictures on the computer, but they are nothing compared to the amount of work time and dedication of an artist.
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