The Rise of Artificial Intelligence

Abstract

Our inventions defined the work we engaged in for centuries; created new industries and employment opportunities around them. They, however, had often unforeseen consequences that affected the way we lived, interacted with each other, and redefined our societal rules. The established narration portrays the impact of major technological leaps in civilization on employment as temporary disruptions: Many finds themselves without employment taken away from them by efficient, laborsaving inventions, but, in the long run, through gradual adaptations, improved education and gaining higher qualifications, everyone benefits. In this chapter, the authors explore the impact of the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence (AI) in relations to the labor market. The authors argue that this rather optimistic, even naïve scenario, collapses while confronted with the exponential growth of AI; in particular, with the potential arrival of syneoids – robotic forms of “strong AI” possessing, or even exceeding, the full range of human cognitive abilities.