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Smart Machines and Service Work
Book

Smart Machines and Service Work

Automation in an Age of Stagnation

Reaktion, 2020 подробнее...


Editorial Rating

9

Qualities

  • Bold
  • Visionary
  • Hot Topic

Recommendation

The media seems to herald dystopian and utopian visions of an automated future: In some scenarios, robots take all the human jobs; in others, automation ushers in a new era of wealth and productivity. These futurist predictions, writes Jason E. Smith, harbor multiple false assumptions. The economy actually suffers massive stagnation as innovation investment in the tech industry declines and most wealthy nations’ productivity growth rates hit near-historic lows. Smith asserts that the future Big Tech now shapes will likely feature exacerbated socioeconomic class struggles.

Take-Aways

  • Automation is not triggering productivity growth or wealth creation. 
  • Fears and fantasies about automation have persisted since Ancient Greece.
  • Big Tech companies aren’t revolutionizing the future of work – they’re maximizing profits.

About the Author

Jason E. Smith contributes to Artforum, Commune, Brooklyn Rail, Critical Inquiry and Radical Philosophy.


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