Technology versus Humanity

“There is already an emerging negative reaction to even relatively modest retail automation in the form of self-service checkouts and it’s noteworthy that Airbnb has just felt it necessary to assure its community of 'hosts' that automation will never replace what they do.”

Robots are coming - can we save mankind?
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/robots-coming-can-we-save-mankind-martin-ward
via Instapaper

“While breakthroughs could come at any time, the problem with automation isn’t robots; it’s politicians, who have failed for decades to support policies that let workers share the wealth from technology-led growth.”

No, Robots Aren’t Killing the American Dream
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/20/opinion/no-robots-arent-killing-the-american-dream.html
via Instapaper

“The complete robotization of our society is likely to lead to overproduction of goods and services. Yet, since it is claimed that most people will lose their jobs to the robots, there will be a global unemployment rate of unprecedented scale which in turn will collapse the demand for those robo-made goods and services. Combine this with a population explosion of 9 or even 10 billion mostly unemployed people who have no means to create income and buy anything, and we are looking at a global economic collapse.”

Top 10 Reasons We Should Fear The Singularity
https://www.singularityweblog.com/top-10-reasons-we-fear-the-singularity/
via Instapaper

“Techno-humanism aims to amplify the power of humans, creating cyborgs and connecting humans to computers, but it still sees human interests and desires as the highest authority in the universe.

Dataism is a new ethical system that says, yes, humans were special and important because up until now they were the most sophisticated data processing system in the universe, but this is no longer the case. The tipping point is when you have an external algorithm that understands you—your feelings, emotions, choices, desires—better than you understand them yourself. That’s the point when there is the switch from amplifying humans to making them redundant.”

Sorry, Y’All—Humanity’s Nearing an Upgrade to Irrelevance
https://www.wired.com/2017/02/yuval-harari-tech-is-the-new-religion/
via Instapaper