Will Robots take over our Jobs? So what?

Will Robots take over our Jobs? What if they do?

Sounds like a very ominous scenario, doesn’t it?

Well, yeah. Robots are replacing humans in a variety of scenarios. Automation is appearing everywhere. Regardless of humans and the pace at which they adapt themselves to the truth, innovations in areas like robotics, computerized algorithms, artificial intelligence, augmented reality, medical sensors and machine-to-machine communications, 3-D printing, and autonomous vehicles will increasingly transform the global economy. They are expected to make the processes efficient and smoother, thereby even displacing many in the human workforce.

So are the possible outcomes somewhat similar to the following imagery?

1) Jobs being replaced by so called “machines with a brain"

2) Humans taking orders from their new robot masters? 

3) Robots competing with humans for jobs and resources.

Funnily enough, the aforementioned scenarios are too ridiculous to be true. AI or robots taking over humans makes good fodder for science fiction but does not hold true in the actual realm. Here, robots are automating processes and activities but not poaching on the livelihoods of humans. If anything, the demand for skilled labour has only gone up. 

Yes, we are talking about STEM. Students from the STEM curricula are in demand around the planet. As more and more automation occurs, the more is requirement for qualified students and professionals who are capable of operating or fine tuning these processes. If anything, the day of the average worker with vocational skills are gone, but it’s sunshine for the one with the right skillsets- possibly in the fields of electronics, computers, mechanics, processes and mathematics.

STEM degrees as % of all degrees in 2011

Facts show that across the BRICS nations and the western world, engineers as a community are the ones in demand (not in quanity but quality). 

Moral of the story?

As we churn out more robots, so do we need to churn out engineers capable of supervising these behemoths.

If you are a engineer or a wanna-be engineer, you can give it a rest and not fret over it. Robots are taking over our jobs, yes; but not making us redundant! They are instead giving us a responsibility of ensuring they do their jobs. 

Happy Roboting ! !

Image credits: The Observatory on Borderless Higher Education
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