by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner
It definitely seems as though we’re lurching towards a future in which the looming A.I. revolution is going to consume the knowledge economy. What’s worse, we could very well face something of a Perfect Storm in late 2024, early 2025 in which we experience a Petite Singularity at the same moment the United States may face the existential choice between civil war or MAGA-themed autocratic rule.
Now, I suppose it’s possible that the Peite Singularity could be punted down the road a few years as we address the whole autocracy or civil war conundrum which might also happen in the context of a potential Third World War. In that case, it would be similar to what happened with TV and WW2.
But there are two issues we have to think seriously about now.
One is, the need to mull the need for a Universal Basic Income. If virtually all knowledge economy jobs become moot, there’s going to be a need for a UBI. The whole issue of UBI could come rushing towards at such an abrupt speed that we won’t have any way to process properly. Our politics are already broken to the point of crisis that the added weight of having to figure out UBI may be too much for it. It could very well be we just don’t have the wherewithal or political will to institute a UBI in the first place.
Meanwhile, there is the risk that MAGA will be replaced with some sort of neo-Luddite movement that will be a direct reaction to the rise of AI. If 3 million high paying transportation jobs go poof! overnight, then the idea of a neo-Luddite movement definitely becomes a very real possibility.
One thing that is going to be interesting to see is if even journalism is transformed to the point that we get all our news from AI. That seems like a very dangerous situation going forward. If we defer things like journalism and law to A.I. there is a real risk that catastrophe might strike us.
It will be interesting to see how things progress. I just don’t think we’re ready for what is on the cusp of happening.
