RAB Source Entry #3 – Said Babaev

Part 1: MLA Citation

Autor, David. “Will Automation Take Away All Our Jobs?” TED, Apr. 2016, www.ted.com/talks/david_autor_will_automation_take_away_all_our_jobs.

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Part 2: Summary

In the TED Talk, “Will Automation Take All Our Jobs?”, economist David Autor met The fear that automation and artificial intelligence (AI) will kill all jobs in every sector head-on. Autor points out that technology replaces particular jobs but creates many new job opportunities and positions a typical historical development case. Automation, he says, tends to supplement rather than supplant human labor, and it frees people up to move into jobs that require creativity or social interaction (or both) or those centered on solving complex problems. Autor uses historical examples, such as the introduction of ATMs, which did not cut bank tellers but made them do different functions altogether. He suggests that although the nature of work will evolve, human skills will remain relevant, and new industries will emerge to absorb displaced workers.

This is followed by David Autor, who responds to the fear that robots will increase inequality by replacing low-skilled jobs faster than blue-collar workers can learn new skills or find jobs managing robots. He goes on to explain that automation puts some jobs out of place. Still, it also heightens productivity and efficiency and thus could have a positive long-term effect on the economy. Hiring research doesn‖t bear out those fears—productivity gains from new technologies provide returns that create more jobs as wealth is spent, creating demand for services and goods in new sectors. Autor’s argument: The problem isn’t disappearing jobs; your workforce must transition into other occupations due to industrial changes and technological advances.

Autor also emphasizes the importance of human attributes that machines cannot replicate, including empathy, creativity, and the ability to navigate complicated social situations. Jobs that require personal interaction, strategy, and emotional intelligence will still have a place for humans because these are complex functions to automate, he said. Instead of worrying about automation, Autor writes we should retrain workers. This can help the skill gap in ensuring that the workforce continues to grow, giving purpose and stability to individuals while holding up industries that are ever-evolving with changes brought about by automation.

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Part 3: Rhetorical Analysis

TED Talk: David Autor educates the general public, policymakers, and economists on what automation might do. Autor speaks conversationally and excels at simplifying complex economic ideas to reach wider audiences. He gives an optimistic note, mixed with concerns about job displacement, suggesting adaptive human labor to coexist around the advancing technologies. As an authoritative economist and professor, Autor appeals to ethos by drawing on historical trends and presenting real-world examples to build his credibility. To appeal to logos, he provides the rationale behind his ideas and points out the evidence: For example, — ATMs increased how much we banked actually to hire more tellers (because people who might not come into a branch at all for some primary transaction would now go in there.) This sensible approach casts out the fear that automation could cause massive unemployment. There is an undercurrent of pathos when Autor articulates concerns about fear of your and my job, which we perform today, given to machines, appealing to the conditionality in his audience: listeners worry, but he assures them that people do adapt.

His intended audience is the average viewer, futurists, or industry experts who would like an alternate perspective on what we think will be a workless future due to automation. Autor is trying to mitigate some of that with a history lesson about technology being less likely to erase jobs than just morph them, and even then, it only temporarily. TED is a well-respected source featuring experts who are leading figures in their specified fields. Autor himself gains credibility as a prominent labor economist and professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), known for his extensive research on the impacts of technology and automation on the workforce. Given that AI and robotics are already being integrated into advanced sectors of the economy, the talk is timely and part of a broader conversation around readying the workforce for an age of technological advancement.

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Part 4: Notable Quotables

1. “History shows that as we create machines that are more powerful, we also create more opportunity for human labor.” (Autor)
2. “ATMs didn’t replace bank tellers; they redefined their roles, leading to a greater focus on customer service and advice.” (Autor)
3. “The work of humans is complex and nuanced in ways that machines are not likely to replicate.” (Autor)