Retraining may be the best way to ease impending tech-driven job losses
It’s inevitable that automation will put some people out of work—but our attention may be best focused on helping those individuals, not slowing the march of tech. So says a new report by the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, a think tank.
Embrace advances: Contrary to some suggestions that governments should slow down technological job erosion through policies like robo-taxes, for example, the ITIF urges the uptake of automation to boost productivity. But, it argues, we should also be helping those who are put out of jobs as much as possible.
Retrain, don’t support: Still, there are many means of helping. And rather than paying out a universal basic income to make unemployment bearable, says ITIF, governments should be re-educating workers and finding them new jobs as soon as possible in order to keep the economy strong.
The bottom line: Automation could be a net benefit to society. Better to focus on helping the displaced, the report says, rather then slowing the whole economy to save jobs.
Keep Reading
Most Popular
Large language models can do jaw-dropping things. But nobody knows exactly why.
And that's a problem. Figuring it out is one of the biggest scientific puzzles of our time and a crucial step towards controlling more powerful future models.
The problem with plug-in hybrids? Their drivers.
Plug-in hybrids are often sold as a transition to EVs, but new data from Europe shows we’re still underestimating the emissions they produce.
How scientists traced a mysterious covid case back to six toilets
When wastewater surveillance turns into a hunt for a single infected individual, the ethics get tricky.
Google DeepMind’s new generative model makes Super Mario–like games from scratch
Genie learns how to control games by watching hours and hours of video. It could help train next-gen robots too.
Stay connected
Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review
Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.