AI Hype: Embrace Our Inner Luddite

There's distrust of artificial intelligence, stemming not just from anti-technology sentiments but also from an awareness of power dynamics. There's a growing acknowledgement that the unrestrained advancement of this technology poses considerable risks. However, there's hesitation in appearing anti-technology, fearing it might portray one as obstructing the promised productivity boom.

The real issue lies not in the technology itself but in the power dynamics driving its evolution. The luddites' resistance to a past technological revolution offers insights into current challenges. In early 19th-century northern England, textile workers confronted new technology that automated their work, replacing skilled jobs with machines. When factory owners refused to share the technology's benefits, workers protested, destroying machines and factories.

This resistance lasted five years until the British government suppressed it. The luddites' movement has become a punchline. Research indicates Australians are among those least trusting of AI systems. As more individuals use large language models, concerns about the technology's risks have grown. The onus is on those proposing change to prove that risks have been mitigated.

AI Risks

These risks come in two forms. One is the existential risk of a sentient mind controlling the world. The other involves tools, built on stolen information, being shaped by big tech companies with disregard for the end user; but now it is workers in their sights, not consumers.

Predictions suggest that half of all white-collar entry-level jobs are at risk, while studies indicate that using tools may harm critical thinking. Business leaders are touting the technology's productivity benefits, while the tech industry resists regulation.

Productivity and AI

The focus on productivity could have unintended consequences if it's co-opted by tech and business interests that equate job cuts with progress. Most Australians are skeptical of the productivity mantra, associating it with cost-cutting rather than shared prosperity. If the government, business, and the tech sector want the public to embrace the future, they should treat the public like luddites. Productivity arises from providing workers with new tools, connections, and markets.

While some innovations were extractive, others, like the steam engine, fostered opportunity and drove prosperity. Resistance will persist where technology holders overreach. The luddites' movement led to worker guilds that fought for laws that civilized industrial capital. Sharing power ensures benefits accrue, sometimes unexpectedly. A past productivity surge in Australia resulted from an accord that globalized the economy while securing social wage advancements.

Feedback between technology creators and users will generate value, strengthened by high trust and shared benefits. The AI challenge requires effort and collaboration with experts. Placing Australian workers at the center of the AI revolution, with the ability to guide its use and enforce safeguards, is the path to national prosperity. Embracing our inner luddite and demanding a voice ensures technology delivers on its promises.