BlueSky Thinking Summary

In a webinar, Hatim Rahman of Kellogg's takes us through the myth of widespread job loss at the hands of AI, using historical data to show minimal impact on employment since the 1950s, except for elevator operators.

He puts a focus on AI's gradual integration into industries, allowing society time to shape its impact.

He thus opines that decision-making in regard to AI deployment—such as replacing workers or enhancing human capabilities—ought to be proactive, citing aviation as an example of not ceding to automation but ensuring the existence of human oversight.

Today's AI discourse is led by very narrow interests, says Rahman.

Therefore, it establishes a need for broad stakeholder participation to ensure that AI design and implementation decisions are made equitably.

Transparent AI systems will facilitate more informed advocacy and accountability, especially where decisions may run foul of societal values.

Unlike what was told about it, Rahman demystifies AI as a tool dependent on human data and a probabilistic manipulation technique rather than an actual intelligence.

In the final analysis, he envisions cooperative AI-human partnerships that empower human strengths, guiding a future in which technology contributes to greater human goals.