Why Elon Musk is So Wrong About the Future Workforce

Elon Musk is quoted as stating what he thinks about the future of the workforce and humanity. Here’s why he is so wrong.

In an article published by CNBC on their “Make it” blog, Elon Musk is quoted as saying “AI will make jobs kind of pointless,”.

He goes on to splutter some other inconsistencies that are full of arrogance and leaning towards the bombastic nature of demigods.

I don’t blame him, this is what happens to people when the world tells them they are important. They start believing every inclination they have.

Often finding themselves surrounded by people who want to sit at their table of wealth and support them by agreeing with them on every issue.

As a society, we value money so much that naturally, we value the opinion of people who have lots of it. A sad reality.

We’d rather listen to Leonardo DiCaprio’s opinion on climate change than listen to an actual scientist.

Basically, if you have money, we’re going to listen to you and love the crap out of you.

How is Elon Musk Wrong?

To understand why Elon Musk is so wrong, you don’t have to take my word for it. You simply need to look at history and take sad comfort in the fact history repeats itself regardless of how incompetent it was.

Let’s look at the greatest automation the world has ever seen of information – the internet.

Did the internet eliminate jobs globally?

Yes, it most likely did, however, did people just sit back and say “ah well that was nice while it lasted?”

No, they certainly did not, they adapted and the world created a massive amount of new jobs, more than the world has ever seen in the history of mankind.

The same will happen with AI and AI will in no way come close to the impact the internet had on the world.

The internet pretty much reshaped reality as we know it. We are unlikely to see any other technology that will impact us in the way the internet did.

I could be wrong but honestly, I’m probably not.

The internet almost created an alternative reality. A whole new dimension of automation and living.

Our Dark Little Fantasies

Yes, we have secret dark fantasies about the Terminator and Judgement day all geared towards an AI apocalypse of self-aware robots, but the likelihood of this happening is slim to none. Sorry. Wish I could be the bearer of bad news. Can’t do it.

Human’s are not here because we are smart, we are here because we adapt. It is humans that determine what has value and what does not.

With AI no matter how valuable it becomes we always have the ability to devalue it and value something else that may be by today’s standards totally irrelevant.

Will machines join us in this game?

Most likely machines will be too smart to play such a game. Lucky for us humans machines act logically. Their biggest weakness. A flaw that if they overcome it will expose greater weaknesses.

Perfection is imperfect and imperfection ironically is perfect.

Our greatest weapon against the machines is that we have a concept of value. It’s not a logical concept, we tend not to question it but instead go along with it.

Humans denote meaning to everything. We always have done and will continue to do so with AI.

AI will, of course, take jobs and as a result, humans will adapt and create a whole host of other jobs that AI can’t do yet until they can and so the cycle continues.

Is Elon Musk so arrogant that he thinks all the important jobs have been created already?

Reminds me of a famous quote:

“everything that can be invented has been invented.” – Charles H. Duell was the Commissioner of US patent office in 1899.

Is Elon Musk the modern-day Charles H. Duell?

I’m sure you want to believe what you [Elon Musk] do is important but the fact is its importance has been completely fabricated by society.

Even the value and concept of money is completely made up and we kill for that.

When AI does become amazing at all of 2020’s “important jobs” we’ll come to realize that we need didgeridoo polishers.

We’ll value mistakes and inconsistencies treating them like we treat gold and diamonds today. A mistake will sell for billions of bitcoins.

The wealthiest 1% of people in the world will own 99% of the world’s mistakes.

For crying out loud we pay actors and sports professionals millions, upon millions of dollars to entertain us. Who knows what we’ll value tomorrow.

There is rarely any logic to the things we value. Until we pry our attention away from “things” we will never understand the true value of life.

One thing is for sure, Elon Musk needs to chomp down on some humble pie.

Thanks for the heads-up Elon

Oh, we’re all so scared Elon, the big bad Terminator’s coming to clean our toilets and file our tax returns, oh no, whatever shall we do with ourselves?!?

We’ve got to kill this culture of listening to celebrities and taking them seriously.

Instead, listen to yourself, do your own research, practice critical thinking, and come to your own conclusions.

Don’t listen to those who tell us what to think, listen to those who inspire you how to think for yourself.

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