AI’s Gift: Rethinking the Purpose of Work

Artificial intelligence has been hailed as the last invention human beings will ever create. Universal basic income, once relegated to hushed conversations, is now being discussed openly in politics. Design thinking has entered mainstream business lexicon as the path to a more human-centered world. These three unique concepts will have a powerful impact on work in the coming decades.

The Catalyst: AI

Artificial intelligence (AI) is fantastic. It can diagnose cancer, create art, and learn 3,000 years worth of strategy from our most complex game in just three days. There is no single technology that will have as great a positive impact in our lifetime. But AI is not without its drawbacks. Data bias and a lack of ethical foundation present looming dangers. But the worry that AI may take our jobs consumes the most public attention.

The bulk of media coverage about the threat of AI displacing workers concentrates on low-skilled, monotonous work, whether driving or manufacturing. Indeed, these will be the first major industries affected in an extremely visible way. There are millions of truck drivers in the United States alone, not to mention the hundreds of thousands driving for ride-sharing companies. And ride-sharing companies do not mince words. They seek to remove the drivers. This is the logical conclusion for…