250 years ago the world was turned upside down by the industrial revolution. Many are saying that a new industrial revolution, a robotic revolution, is already upon us.
Bill Gates of the American Enterprise Institute predicts that in 20 years there will be a completely different employment landscape in the country and that the demand for labor will be much less, especially in low-skill jobs.
"Technology, over time, will reduce the demand for jobs, particularly at the lower end of the skillset." - Bill Gates, March 13, 2014
Waiters, drivers, the last workers in manufacturing, and telemarketers are already feeling the squeeze. Take, for instance, the following example.
Zeke Miller at Time Magazine recently found Samantha West, a telemarketer,who won't admit she is, in fact, a robot.
Is society ready? What are the upsides to the mundane jobs of the world being automated?
Guest:
- Erik Brynjolfsson, director of the MIT Center for Digital Business and also the author of "Second Machine Age: Work Progress and Prosperity in a Time of Brilliant Technologies."
*This is the second segment in the March 25 edition of The Source, which airs at 3 p.m. on KSTX 89.1 FM -- audio from this show will be posted by 5:30 p.m.
