Over the last several decades, millions of good paying manufacturing jobs have been lost in the United States to outsourcing and technological innovation which reduced the need for manpower. In recent times, artificial intelligence or AI has been deemed by many as a threat to millions of jobs. Goldman Sachs reported in late May of this year that as AI advances up to 300 million jobs are at risk of being deemed obsolete by the technology. A British computer scientist named Geoffrey Hinton has echoed these alarming sentiments but did not stop simply at the realities of eventual job losses. Hinton warned that as the technology advances, he believes that artificial intelligence may be able to think autonomously at the level that a human can process information. In this case, movies such as the Terminator could become a scary, dangerous reality.
Most troublingly is the fact that technology has helped to destroy what were once stable jobs. Robots have gradually advanced and are increasingly utilized in manufacturing and distribution centers, and self-service kiosks are becoming commonplace in stores and restaurants around the country. AI is the most modern threat, and now individuals are even worried that it poses a direct risk to personal privacy. Recently, Bill Gates funded a tech company that has invented an AI chatbot designed to learn users interests and preferences over time. The platform is named Pix.
As with any advancement in technology, people with sinister intentions utilize the innovations to take advantage of vulnerable people and enrich themselves by tricking or duping others. In a report by Blaze, the Senate Committee on Aging recently released a report that estimates that older Americans (seniors) lost a combined $1.1 billion dollars in scams and fraudulent schemes related to Artificial Intelligence in 2022. Hauntingly, AI driven technology has advanced so significantly that it is now capable of copying private voices over a telephone that people are familiar with.
