Artificial Intelligence is definitely going to remodel and transform our life styles. However, in what way? – is a question to ponder upon.
Artificial Intelligence and robotics is nothing new. It actually dates back to the ancient civilizations of Greece, China, Arab, and what not. Greek myths of golden robots of Hephaestus -God of blacksmiths, carpenters and other manual workers- and Galatea -ivory statue of Pygmalion, a legendary figure- were the earliest speculations of AI in history. Then came the mechanical statues of Egypt and Greece, Aristotle’s theories syllogism, Gerber’s Arabic alchemist theory of Takwin, Al-Jazari’s orchestra of mechanical human beings, Paracelsus’s artificial men, and much more that bares a date of antiquity to 1st century.
Today, the technology has reached beyond the confines of genius minds to right in everyone’s hand. We are surrounded by AI all around; Google, video games, CGI effects, e- commerce software and etcetera – you name it and you will have it!
Is Artificial Intelligence Going To Affect Man Labor and Jobs Availability?
One question that is disturbing everyone’s peace of mind these days is whether robots are going to take over our job. Everything we do and are capable of doing- Al is rendering it completely automatable. According to a survey, hundreds of Al experts are of the view that in 2040 computers might be as intelligent as humans. So what will the humans do then; eat peanuts?
Today, smartphones have rendered human intelligence to shame where everyone is armed with smart devices. Consider the fact after 15-20 years when these handheld devices would be more smarter, than we would think of them as entities not separate from us and will become more and more dependent on them.
World Economic Forum has predicted that by 2020 almost 5 million jobs will be lost. Similarly, a study compiled by McKinsey Global Institute has also speculated that the jobs lost by 2030 can amount to 800 million.
The development of full artificial intelligence could spell the end of the human race….It would take off on its own, and re-design itself at an ever increasing rate. Humans, who are limited by slow biological evolution, couldn’t compete, and would be superseded — Stephen Hawking told the BBC
Technology Can Also Mean More Jobs
Despite all these statistics, it’s not going to be that much destructive and leave us all utterly useless. There will definitely be a transition. However, the total displacement of human jobs with Robots and AI is rather a baseless fear. The data acquired from most of the studies done in past on the concerned issue of ‘jobs lost to artificial intelligence’ has its own methodology and based on worst case scenarios. The numbers can be much less if a middle ground is considered.
At the moment, only 5% of occupations are automated and about 30% of the workload can be automated of about 60% occupations according to a study.
The McKinsey’s report has also affirmed that with the new technology, more jobs can be provided which can redefine new careers. One more important fact is that automation and Robots can’t provide employers with “Unpredictability”. To deal with evolving situations and ambiguous data is only a fort of human beings. Moreover, creativity, emotional range and complexity are the skills that can still be handled by humans only.
Two-Tiered Labor Market
According to a research paper, ‘Robots and Jobs: Evidence from US Labor Markets‘,
In between 1990 to 2007, each new robot introduced to the US labor market had 3 to 5.6 jobs lost in the surrounding local area.
The point to be noted is that the robots mentioned are the industrial ones that are automatically controlled, and not the AI established in software.
Advanced technology can also mean advanced and cognitive jobs will have more potential and demand. However, this foretells us that an unequal accumulation of wealth can be possible due to the advancement of this particular technology. The labor community and manual worker can be vastly affected due to this automation. Similar is the case for data processing jobs, which can also be taken over by AI and automation. In the end, this can all lead to the destruction of social mobility.
Pakistan in the Field Of Artificial Intelligence
Pakistan is much far from the technology frontier and access to the newest mechanization and robotics is limited due to many economical and educational barriers.
However, it looks like Pakistan has just come to terms with the “digital era”. The country has only recently started regarding ‘progression of AI’ with any importance. In April, 2018, Pakistani Government allocated around $3.3 million annually to this department. Though, this amount seems rather scanty compared to the neighboring country India, which has allocated $480 million annually to AI, machine learning and internet.
Pakistan’s AI Startups
There are few Pakistani tech startups that can be considered a ray of hope for the future of Pakistan in the concerned department.
ADOO AI, which is the Pakistan’s first and Asia’s emerging Artificial Intelligence Company, has brought off many projects regarding microfinance and smart cities in several countries.
Mountainise, is yet another Pakistan based startup that has also developed its ways to deal with performance marketing with the help of artificial intelligence and automation. (Clarity would be delighted to showcase your startup if you are a Pakistani AI Startup. Contact us here)
How Can Pakistan Be Affected By the ‘Digital Era’?
The effects of automation can differ from country to country. Pakistan, where the establishment of AI and automation almost equals to null, is far from any worst effects for now.
Howbeit, if the technology progression rises – Pakistan having a multitude of labor intensive industrialisation- will suffer to no ends. Seeing the current education system and the literacy percentage in the country, it is highly unlikely to promote the low skilled workers to premium high tech jobs and positions.
If we were to be optimistic, we can say money earned by AI and automation will be redistributed in the human population. However, we know better!