Humans Remain ‘Economically Attractive’ Workers: MIT/IBM Study

Artificial intelligence (AI) may not be as imminent in taking over human jobs as previously feared, according to new research from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and IBM. Previous studies estimated that around half of current human jobs could be automated, but the MIT-IBM Watson AI lab’s research shows that the cost of automation may not be feasible for many positions in the current economy. The high costs of training and implementation, as well as the general nature of AI systems, make them less attractive for many applications. As a result, only 23% of worker wages for vision tasks would be attractive to automate at current costs. However, the researchers caution that the transformation to an AI-led workforce is likely to happen gradually rather than overnight. The decision-making process for implementing AI is complex and influenced by both short- and long-term economic factors. Understanding the pace of automation is crucial for making informed policy and business decisions.