Bernie Sanders warns about massive unemployment caused by AI: “It may be able to control us”
The seasoned senator has warned about the dangers of AI in the modern world of work.
When Bernie Sanders speaks, a lot of people listen. Even more don’t, but should do so.
The long-standing senator spoke to Gizmodo about the AI ‘revolution’ admitting to his fears about the technology and what impact —positive or negative— it may have on the ordinary working classes of the United States and beyond.
“Technology and AI is neither good nor bad,” he began, adding that ”it depends on how it is used, and it depends upon who benefits from it. Unless we change the political dynamics, the benefits are going to accrue to the people on top at the expense of working people. That to me is the most important issue. I want workers to benefit from this new technology, not just the people on top."
Sanders highlights a troubling trend: increased productivity hasn’t translated to higher wages. Real wages for workers have stagnated, or even declined, while productivity has soared. “Workers today... are earning less, and I fear very much that almost all the new benefits of worker productivity will go to the people on top at the expense of working people,” Sanders explained. “That is something that concerns me very much.”
Sanders also expressed concern over job losses, saying that experts believe that it could well be a possible consequence of AI developments: “Some people say there will be massive job losses, I tend to agree with them," he said, before adding that “I happen to believe this is not like the Industrial Revolution: I think this could be a lot more severe.”
Before finishing the interview, Sanders got bleak for a brief moment: “There are very, very knowledgeable people—and I just talked to one today—who worry very much that human beings will not be able to control the technology, and that artificial intelligence will in fact dominate our society," he admitted, adding that “we will not be able to control it. It may be able to control us. That’s kind of the doomsday scenario—and there is some concern about that among very knowledgeable people in the industry."
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Sanders’s solution, it seems, is simple: “I think we’ve got to mobilize the trade union movement to be militant in standing up against the dangers of AI to workers’ rights.”
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