Lifeboat Foundation

My new article for TechCrunch on capitalism and the robot revolution:

Economic experts are trying to figure out a question that just two decades ago seemed ridiculous: If 90 percent of human jobs are replaced by robots in the next 50 years — something now considered plausible — is capitalism still the ideal economic system to champion? No one is certain about the answer, but the question is making everyone nervous — and forcing people to dig deep inside themselves to discover the kind of future they want.

After America beat Russia in the Cold War, most of the world generally considered capitalism to be the hands-down best system on which to base economies and democracies. For decades, few doubted capitalism’s merit, which was made stronger by thriving globalization and a skyrocketing world net worth. In 1989 — when the Berlin Wall fell — the world had only 198 billionaires. Now, according to Forbes, there are 1,826 of them in 2016.

Continue reading “Will capitalism survive the robot revolution?” »

(An alternate version of this article was originally published in the Boston Globe)

On December 2nd, 1942, a team of scientists led by Enrico Fermi came back from lunch and watched as humanity created the first self-sustaining nuclear reaction inside a pile of bricks and wood underneath a football field at the University of Chicago. Known to history as Chicago Pile-1, it was celebrated in silence with a single bottle of Chianti, for those who were there understood exactly what it meant for humankind, without any need for words.

Now, something new has occurred that, again, quietly changed the world forever. Like a whispered word in a foreign language, it was quiet in that you may have heard it, but its full meaning may not have been comprehended. However, it’s vital we understand this new language, and what it’s increasingly telling us, for the ramifications are set to alter everything we take for granted about the way our globalized economy functions, and the ways in which we as humans exist within it.

Continue reading “Deep Learning Is Going to Teach Us All the Lesson of Our Lives: Jobs Are for Machines” »

Artificial intelligence expert Jerry Kaplan says those whose jobs involve ‘a narrow set of duties’ are most likely to see their work replaced by automation.

President Obama announced a new initiative this week to connect 20 million more Americans to broadband by 2020, further promoting the White House’s agenda to reclassify high speed Internet as a public utility, like water or electricity.

The digital initiative, named ConnectALL, is intended “for folks looking for jobs or workers hoping to learn new skills,” wrote Obama in a Facebook post, acknowledging that in today’s economy, “the Internet isn’t a luxury — it’s a necessity.”

I like this article; why? Because if I plan to make any investment into a robot that is my personal assistant, or housekeeper, or caregiver, etc. I want to ensure that they fit my own needs as a person. Many of us have taken some sort of a personality profile for work; interview for jobs where you were reviewed to be a “fit” culturaly, etc. as well as met people 1st before you hired them. So, why should be any different from the so called “humnoid robots?” And, this should be intriguing for some of us where only 6% of your gender thinks and processes information like you do.

Emotional behaviors can make your drone seem like it’s an adventurer, anti-social, or maybe just exhausted.

Continue reading “Why You Want Your Drone to Have Emotions” »

Now, we’re saying 50 yrs instead of 30 yrs. And, 3 months ago it was 10 yrs. I guess 6 months from now it will be 100 yrs from now. Folks need to get a little more pragmatic instead of hyping too much or you will lose creditability with consumers and the markets.

Pew Report: Majority think AI will replace humans, though most still believe their job is secure by Steven Loeb on March 10, 2016.

Big money in hacking law firms. Hackers being hired and paid by parties in suits, companies in acquisition, etc.

The growing influence of the internet in law has opened up a wealth of opportunities for cyber law specialists, according to cyber law expert Bradley Deacon.

Continue reading “Rise in cyber risk leads to jobs boost” »

Matt O’Brien argues that we should look more carefully at the economy before panicking about robots taking our jobs.

The interesting piece in the articles that I have seen on robots taking jobs have only occurred in Asia and in certain situations in the UK. I believe that companies across the US see some of the existing hacking risks (especially since the US has the highest incidents of hackings among the other countries) that prevents companies from just replacing their employees with connected autonomous robots plus I am not sure that robotics is at the level of sophistication that most consumers want to spend a lot of money on at the moment.

Bottom line is that until hacking is drastically reduce (if not finally eliminated); that autonomous AI like connected robots and humanoids will find they will have a hard time being adopted by the US collective mass of the population.

In the future the global employment market will rely heavily on robots, artificial intelligence, and all sorts of automation.

Continue reading “These are the 13 jobs in London where a robot is most likely to steal your job” »