What is about to reveal the new so called Industry
4.0 and what problems might occur due to the intensive implementation of
artificial intelligence in industry and our lives in general? This was one of
the main topics of last years’ meeting of the World Economic forum in Davos,
Switzerland.
Annually, the Swiss nonprofit foundation established
by Klaus Schwab, whose mission is cited as "committed to improving the
state of the world by engaging business, political, academic, and other leaders
of society to shape global, regional, and industry agendas", conducts its
forums and discussions over world economy, social problems and market trends.
In an article for Foreign Affairs, Klaus Schwab wrote: “The First Industrial
Revolution used water and steam power to mechanize production. The Second used
electric power to create mass production. The Third used electronics and
information technology to automate production. Now, a Fourth Industrial
Revolution is building on the Third, the digital revolution that has been
occurring since the middle of the last century. It is characterized by a fusion
of technologies that is blurring the lines between the physical, digital, and
biological spheres.”
Those
major changes in how we produce, how we consume and the whole industry in
general are extremely and unexpectedly intensive. In the next few years we’ll
be surrounded by artificial intelligence. From self-driving cars and non-pilot
aircrafts to virtual assistances and software that could translate text live
and invest our money. Those upcoming changes in industry, the way we’ll produce
our everyday objects 10 years from now and the mass implementation of
artificial intelligence in those processes could not only help society, but
could also be the reason for many future global problems and social imbalances.
In
an interview with CNBC, in November, Tesla CEO Elon Musk joined a growing list
of tech executives who support universal basic income as a possible solution to
the widespread unemployment that automation will likely cause. "I think
we'll end up doing universal basic income," Musk told the crowd at the
World Government Summit in Dubai, according to Fast Company. "It's going
to be necessary."
The idea and philosophy behind basic
income is wild spread and known for many years. Basic income is a form of
social security in which all citizens or residents of a country receive a
regular, unconditional sum of money, either from a government or from some
other public institution, independent of any other income. Basic income systems
that are financed by the profits of publicly owned enterprises (often called
social dividend, also known as citizen's dividend) and are major components in
many proposed models of market socialism. But is it the market oriented
socialism applicable to nowadays’ society and current policies? And if it’s
really going to be mandatory and necessary in the near future considering many
world leaders’ and Silicon Valley titans’ thoughts and comments on it, how is
Europe and European Union considering the problem and is this going to be the
solution if those problems occur on the Oldest continent?
An example for future implementation of basic income
was Switzerland’s 2016 referendum over the proposal for guaranteed minimum
income. Many other countries around Europe are also considering this future
policy. This year, Finland has become the first country in Europe to pay its
unemployed citizens an unconditional monthly sum, in a social experiment that
will be watched around the world amid gathering interest in the idea of a
universal basic income. Under the two-year, nationwide pilot scheme, which
began on 1 January, 2,000 unemployed Finns aged 25 to 58 will receive a
guaranteed sum of €560 (£475). The income will replace their existing social
benefits and will be paid even if they find work. Government hopes this two-year
social experiment will cut red tape, reduce poverty and boost employment.
No matter what kind of political-economy ideologies
we’re sticking with or we consider the best for society, we have to face the
facts that world as we know it won’t be the same in the near future. And is the
basic income going to be the life-saving pill for the upcoming social
imbalances and diseases I would like to, but cannot give a certain answer to
this question now. The only thing I know is that as we’ve been doing through
the long evolution of human kind we’ll have to face those problems, overcome
them and live and adapt by those dynamic changes in the New Uncertain World.
DIMITAR DIMITROV
References:
·
https://www.weforum.org/
·
http://www.capital.bg/
[artigo de opinião produzido no âmbito da unidade curricular “Economia Portuguesa e Europeia” do 3º ano do curso de Economia (1º ciclo) da EEG/UMinho]
[artigo de opinião produzido no âmbito da unidade curricular “Economia Portuguesa e Europeia” do 3º ano do curso de Economia (1º ciclo) da EEG/UMinho]
Sem comentários:
Enviar um comentário