A majority of people and organisations have embraced machines as a way of ensuring efficiency of work and minimizing the cost of output. Artificial intelligence is programming machines such that they can mimic human beings in terms of performing tasks and solving problems. There is no denying that technological advancements over the past few decades are evident and more individuals have embraced technology as it makes work less tedious. People have different views on the matter with some feeling that it does more harm than good to the labour sector, while others see it as one way of fostering advancement in the medical and industrial sectors. The paper aims at discussing the advantages and disadvantages of employing machines in the employment sector on human labour, and it impacts on the economy of the country. Will artificial intelligence render human labour useless? Or will it have a positive impact on human labour by simplifying it?
An advantage of artificial intelligence is that it has made it possible to reduce on errors and has increased efficiency, which is beneficial in areas like mining, astronomy and mathematics. Human beings are more liable to give inaccurate results in complex analysis; this is because it is tedious and time-consuming to get accurate results. Astronomy has embraced technology by sending robots to space to acquire data as they are more accurate and can survive the harsh conditions without being damaged (Guo, et al., 2018). They are also less risky and costly to send to space compared to human beings. Satellites can be programmed to take accurate pictures of space so that astronomers have a better understanding of the galaxy. They can also perform accurate calculations in space about the distance between planets and other metrological objects which is useful in the field of astronomy. Machines are used during the mining processes since they are capable of penetrating areas that would be considered impossible or dangerous for humans, such as oceans and seas. The process has been made easier and less harmful to human beings since the machines can work for more extended hours than humans and can survive the harsh conditions. A contradicting disadvantage is that it is costly to acquire such technology. The technology used in mining and astronomy is costly regarding purchasing, repair and routine maintenance. Since artificial intelligence does not advance with time, the machines have to be programmed frequently which is expensive. In case the machinery gets damaged the company can accrue tremendous losses which may lead to bankruptcy and eventually closure of the company. In the year 1972, the total cost for the Apollo program was approximately twenty-five billion dollars, and more is spent each year to ensure the smooth running of the programs. Employing machinery in mining has resulted in more companies laying off workers since they are not as reliable and profitable as the machines, they view them as a burden. A result of this has been increased unemployment levels in the country (Korinek " Stiglitz, 2018). Since it is more convenient for a majority of companies to use machinery, most have very few human labours, a trend that might be adopted more frequently in the future.
Artificial intelligence has increased the quality of health care services offered by the medical sector. The mortality rates have been reduced as technological advancement has made it possible for doctors to prioritise patients that are in dire need of medical assistance. The treatment of chronic diseases has been improved as better care and treatment has been facilitated by technology reducing deaths due to such conditions. Technological advancement has made it possible for fast and accurate diagnosis of diseases which facilitates administering the required treatment to patients (Cohen " Feigenbaum, 2014). Errors that are brought about by health practitioners being worn out have been reduced since they use machines to assist them in doing various tasks. The doctors can work for shorter hours and do minimal tasks; this means that they are full of energy while performing their duties reducing errors. Artificial intelligence can be used in medical research to develop vaccines or better treatments; this will save a lot of time and money as the process would be faster and use less labour. The use of virtual presence technology improves the interaction of patients and doctors such that the physical presence of a doctor is not needed for a patient to receive assistance when they are admitted in the hospital. The remote presence robot makes it possible for the doctor to engage with their patients without being physically present. The implementation of artificial intelligence in surgery would mean that a lot of surgeons might end up losing their jobs in the future, it will be upsetting for them as they will end up losing their sources of income too. The application of technology in the field of medicine might increase the cost of treatment which might result in it being unaffordable for middle and low-income earners (Williams, et al., 2018). The country uses a lot of resources to acquire such technology and might be forced to reduce the number of health practitioners hired to afford the expensive technology. Machines are programmed in such a way that their main focus is on achieving accuracy. Hence, they lack human feelings such as empathy. Patient’s needs empathy during their recovery process and also someone to interact with, which is unachievable by technology. A majority of patients may also prefer to receive treatment in institutions that employ a lot of technology during treatment albeit there is no need, this may lead to misuse of resources.
Artificial intelligence has led to increased growth of industries and businesses in the in the country. Technology has hastened the manufacturing process for a majority of manufacturing industries and increased the amount of goods produced daily (Makridakis, 2017). Increased production has increased sales and export of the products, leading to increased revenue and profits acquired by the industry promoting the country’s economic growth. Smart technologies which possess language processing features have made it possible for businesses to attend to customers’ inquiry over the phone without necessarily speaking to their representatives. A lot of time and money has been saved by businesses as it does not have to hire more human labour. By the year 2035, it is estimated that the profits earned by manufacturing companies will have risen by approximately 38%. The productivity and efficiency of human labour will also increase as the employees will be able to focus on high added value duties while machines are programmed to do other duties. The contradicting disadvantage is that the devices are expensive to acquire and might end up increasing the cost of production for most industries. The price of the manufactured products might be slightly high discouraging customers from purchasing them resulting in reduced sales. In case a machine gets broken, the industry might acquire massive losses for the day as it may hinder normal operations. Complex devices can be hard to operate unless the employees are trained or highly experienced labour is hired, this can be costly for the company (Ertel, 2018). The use of artificial intelligence in businesses can be harmful to the customers since it can be hacked and their private information acquired by another person. Also, the customer care services offered to the customers might not be as good as when their issues are addressed by the business representatives. If the problem is not programmed to be handled by the computer, then the customers will be disappointed and choose to receive the services from another company.
In conclusion, artificial intelligence has a high probability of replacing human labour since it is cheaper, faster and more efficient. More companies will adopt the use of technology in almost every employment sector. Even though machines cannot replace human beings, since they only do what they are programmed to and have no morals or virtues, the should be used in collaboration with human labour. Increased use of machinery may result in a wider gap between the rich and the poor in society. Since companies are owned by the affluent individuals in the society, they would end up accumulating most of the wealth while the middle class get almost nothing. Unemployment levels in the country will increase at an alarming rate which might consequently increase the crime levels in the country. Instead of relying on the use of technology, people should majorly depend on human labour since machines only do what they are programmed to do and would not be helpful in some situations. Although the country might be experiencing increased economic growth primarily due to increased industrialisation, the living standards of a majority of its citizens might be low. The advantages of technology in medicine should not be overlooked; it should be embraced as it will improve the quality of health care system offered to patients. For artificial intelligence to be have a positive impact on the life of human beings, it needs to complement human labour not substituting it. The government should come up with policies that will ensure that human labour is still significant in the employment sector even with the increasing technological advancements.
References
Cohen, P. R. " Feigenbaum, E. A., 2014. The Handbook of Artificial Intelligence. : Butterworth-Heinemann.
Ertel, W., 2018. Introduction to Artificial Intelligence.:Springer.
Guo, P., Wang, Y., Liu, H. " Cheung, Y.-m., 2018. Computational Intelligence in Astronomy. International Journal of Computational Intelligence Systems, 1(11), pp. 572-575.
Korinek, A. " Stiglitz, J. E., 2018. Artificial Intelligence and Its Implications for Income Distribution and Unemployment. NBER Chapters.
Makridakis, S., 2017. The Forthcoming artificial Intelligence (AI) revolution: Its impact on society and firms. Futures, Volume 90, pp. 47-55.
Williams, A. M. et al., 2018. Artificial Intelligence, Physiological Genomics and Precision Medicine. Physiological Genomics.
