Jim Roye
Jim Roye
Aug 25, 2017 · 1 min read

If people can successfully take their political power away from the plutocrats, they can create a society in which automation and artificial intelligence are democratically controlled public assets. Everyone becomes a part owner of these technologies, gets a share of the profits they generate, and gets a unit of control over where they’re headed.

Making AI a “public asset” is a weak solution. We’ve seen the development of “public assets” in the past. Government funded R&D is great for developing basic ideas (like the Interwebs!) but it sucks at actual deployment of technology to the masses.

A better solution that gets you to the same end is to provide a Reverse Social Security System (aka “wealth funds”) instead of a UBI. In effect, instead of handing out UBI checks, you create investment funds and deposit the money into each individual’s account. They then use those accounts to buy/sell stocks and mutual funds. “We the people” would then be able to be the venture capitalists funding the private companies developing all the new technologies. And, just as with VCs right now, those investments would come at the cost of a share of the companies they funded and profits would be returned to the investors instead of the plutocrats.

)
    Jim Roye

    Written by

    Jim Roye