Automation Is Inevitable But Could Result In More Jobs, Not Less

Automation has been feared by the common workers in the U.S. since the start of the industrial revolution, where factory and mill workers lost jobs by the hundreds of thousands. Now, the remaining jobs that weren’t at risk before like driving, cooking, and even news reporting, have been painted as targets. According to new data, however, the inevitable future automation of several industries might actually create more jobs than it would destroy.

One of the most recent examples of companies outsourcing jobs to machines is Amazon Go, which is a concept that the retailer announced will heavily feature artificial intelligence, Futurism reports.  Equipped with sensors and even computer vision, Amazon Go will basically allow customers to just grab stuff off the shelves and leave.

Now, the upside of this is the fact that customers will no longer have to deal with long lines at the cashier, which can be a drag during the holidays. Customers who don’t work in the service industry might even find this development worth celebrating. However, aside from the fact that it results in less personnel, there are also those who view the development as disruptive to an established industry.

On that note, The Wall Street Journal reports that automation can actually create jobs based on empirical evidence. Citing Automatic Teller Machines as examples, the publication notes how the cheaper costs allowed banks to open more branches in more locations. This, in turn, resulted in more jobs in the form of personnel.

The WSJ used the paper published by Ian Stewart, a UK economist at the Deloitte LLP firm. Stewart tracked census data in the U.K. and went as far back as the 1700s. He wanted to know the correlation between advancements in machinery and job growth and found that the two are actually quite compatible.

Then again, these results are seen in the long run. It is still a fact that thousands of workers are going to feel the brunt of the immediate impact of automation, which won’t likely be alleviated for years or decades.