# What happens when the robots (peacefully) take over? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [January 9, 2012, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914 "2012-01-09T11:43:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 16
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2015, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914/301 "2015-07-16T00:36:25Z")
OK, NOW the robots have gone TOO FAR! [Someone has taught a bot to write erotica!](http://fusion.net/story/150535/i-taught-a-bot-to-write-its-own-erotica-and-you-can-too/) [I write erotica!!!](http://www.amazon.com/Pat-Powers/e/B005HI33OA) Fortunately, for now I’m just a LEETLE better than the bot: > [@erotibot](#): > > I love you before your mouth. I like that you should be with my face, you wanted to stop you with a woman. I’m about so much for my cock head. I was no more cock to the table, but I was in my love in the mirror. OK, so erotibot writes like a Chinese English student who is trying to make some money but has no clue about grammar or the meaning of words. How long before it writes like a promising Indian English student looking to make some money? And how long before it ascends to the dizzying height of my prose? > [@Pat Powers from "Shameless Outlaws"](#): > > He rammed her with instinctual efficiency until his cock was dry and collapsed upon her like a tsunami collapsing against a breakwall, only with less foam and loss of life. ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2015, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914/302 "2015-07-16T13:23:54Z")
I…I…uh… :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2015, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914/303 "2015-07-16T17:49:01Z")
> [@SlackerInc](#): > > I…I…uh… > > :eek: Yah, my prose often leaves people speechless. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2015, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914/304 "2015-07-17T14:42:46Z")
[Robot hotel opens.](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/07/15/robot-hotel-japan_n_7801246.html?ir=Technology) Sounds like they’re not really THERE yet … they still need humans to make beds and man the security cameras … but they’re getting along. And a receptionist that’s a dinosaur … well, that’s an uptick! ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2015, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914/305 "2015-07-21T04:26:26Z")
[Barclays Bank looks to dump 30,000 employees through automation.](http://diginomica.com/2015/07/20/barclays-set-to-cut-30000-jobs-as-it-looks-to-increase-automation-and-reduce-costs/#.Va3Iz_nJuSo) Imagine if they had exported 30,000 jobs to India. The outrage! This is how the robot job holocaust happens, bit by bit and step by step, with jobs taken by automation and no new jobs on the horizon. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2015, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914/306 "2015-07-29T18:49:22Z")
[Meanwhile, in India,](http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/ites/infosys-wipro-tcs-lose-over-100000-people-in-last-four-quarters-as-automation-kicks-in/articleshow/48258813.cms)automation is hurting their IIT sector, causing big firms to lose over one million people in last four quarters. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2015, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914/307 "2015-07-30T06:04:04Z")
[And China sets up an all-robot factory](http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/business/china-sets-up-first-unmanned-factory-all-processes-are-operated-by-robots/articleshow/48238331.cms), workforce drops from 650 to 60, while productivity and quality control go up. ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2015, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914/308 "2015-07-30T06:11:14Z")
Interesting updates, as always. I took note of the India case in particular, as I have read things for years about how the government has in the past banned various kinds of mechanization (not automation, exactly) because they reduced the number of people required to work in a factory (increasing an individual person’s productivity, looked at from the other angle) and they felt that what was more important, given their huge population, was to provide large numbers of jobs rather than to increase productivity. That always seemed like it couldn’t possibly be the right answer, but the impulse is understandable. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2015, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914/309 "2015-08-02T06:02:38Z")
> [@SlackerInc](#): > > Interesting updates, as always. > > I took note of the India case in particular, as I have read things for years about how the government has in the past banned various kinds of mechanization (not automation, exactly) because they reduced the number of people required to work in a factory (increasing an individual person’s productivity, looked at from the other angle) and they felt that what was more important, given their huge population, was to provide large numbers of jobs rather than to increase productivity. That always seemed like it couldn’t possibly be the right answer, but the impulse is understandable. The problem with that is, when you artificially inflate the cost of manufacturing to maintain jobs by banning automation, you create opportunities for other, less scrupulous manufacturers in other countries that don’t have such regulations. So it’s a difficult thing to do. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2015, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914/310 "2015-08-02T06:04:56Z")
[In England, a prototype robotic chef is inveiled.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWWoEQWwtrM&feature=youtu.be) With video. Not sure how well it works compared to human chefs: no information, for instance, on whether the robotic chef can locate ingredients in cabinets, fridge, etc. by itself or whether it needs them assembled for it. But there’s video and the hand motions look very smooth indeed. ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2015, 6:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914/311 "2015-08-02T06:31:40Z")
> [@Evil\_Captor](#): > > OK, so erotibot writes like a Chinese English student who is trying to make some money but has no clue about grammar or the meaning of words. Actually it all sounds tantalizingly Lovecraftian. Cultist’s erotica written in personal journal-style, deep Mythos. “I was my cock in the mirror. Your mouth on the table. Scurrying scraps of unfathomable knowledge at the edge of hearing. No sight for the cockhungry. No sight for the cockhungry.” ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2015, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914/312 "2015-08-02T06:34:08Z")
> [@Evil\_Captor](#): > > The problem with that is, when you artificially inflate the cost of manufacturing to maintain jobs by banning automation, you create opportunities for other, less scrupulous manufacturers in other countries that don’t have such regulations. So it’s a difficult thing to do. You can pretty much quote this sentence verbatim for, e.g. stringent copyright law. And yet… I suppose the main difference is that regulating automation benefits poor people while insane copyright laws (mostly) benefits ludicrously wealthy people. So there’s that ;). ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2015, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914/313 "2015-08-03T14:57:14Z")
[NPR is starting to catch on to how scary the future is.](http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/labor-saving-robots-spell-doom-american-workers/) > [@](#): > > \*\*PAUL SOLMAN: Of course, new jobs are being created in Silicon Valley. That’s why entrepreneur Vivek Wadhwa confidently told us this in 2012. > > VIVEK WADHWA, [Wadhwa.com](http://Wadhwa.com): The convergence of these technologies will create jobs in areas we can’t even think of. > > PAUL SOLMAN: But these days, Wadhwa is singing a different, dolorous tune. > > VIVEK WADHWA: Technology’s moving faster than anyone believes. And it is going to disrupt industries and create unemployment on a scale that we haven’t imagined before. > > PAUL SOLMAN: Why did you used to think it wasn’t going to be a problem? > > VIVEK WADHWA: Because I believed what people of Silicon Valley do, that technology will make everything all right. I have had debates with a who’s-who of Silicon Valley, and I sit back and think, these people live in their own world, that they don’t know poverty, they don’t know despair. They don’t know what the impact of unemployment is. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2015, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914/314 "2015-08-04T17:10:51Z")
[Washington Post article](https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/08/03/donald-trumps-big-lie-about-the-global-economy/) says America’s manufacturing economy didn’t lose all that many jobs to China and Mexico. Most of the job losses were due to automation … and those jobs aren’t coming back. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2015, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914/315 "2015-08-06T16:39:53Z")
[Interesting article on the robot job holocaust](http://www.zdnet.com/article/why-its-time-to-prepare-for-a-world-where-machines-can-do-your-job/)in ZDNet. It contains a quote that very nicely summarizes a point that people who don’t feel threatened by automation fail to get: > [@](#): > > “It all boils down to machine learning. Most of the automation will be driven by software that learns from its own experience,” said Hod Lipson, professor of Mechanical Engineering, Columbia University in NYC. > > “As it learns, it gets better. Not just that specific instance of the software gets better, but all instances learn from each other’s experiences. This compounding effect means that there is tremendous leverage.” > > Lipson gives the example of a self-driving car that shares its “wisdom” with other instances of the same software inside other autonomous vehicles. > > “In a relatively short while, the driverless car’s AI will have accumulated a billion hours of driving experience – more than a thousand human lifetimes. That’s difficult to beat. And it’s the same situation for medical diagnostics, strategic investment, farming, pharmacy. The AI doctor that sees patients will have quickly seen millions of patients and encounter almost all possible types of problems – more than even the most experienced doctor will see in her lifetime.” When one piece of software learns something, all other pieces of software learn it instantly and perfectly. Humans have a similar mechanism, but there’s nothing instant about it. Or perfect. It’s slow and spotty and … REALLY slow. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2015, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914/316 "2015-08-06T16:44:03Z")
First thing they’ll do is take revenge for Hitchbot. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2015, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914/317 "2015-08-06T18:23:15Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > First thing they’ll do is take revenge for Hitchbot. Yeah, and the self-driving cars will detour around Philadelphia. Always a good idea for anyone! ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914/318 "2015-08-22T12:29:33Z")
[He recommends it to help people made jobless by technology. I.e., automation.](http://ftalphaville.ft.com/2015/08/20/2137996/productivity-polarisation-in-our-modern-times/)This is the first I’ve seen of a corporate numbers guy connecting the dots. If the wealthy corporations get behind Basic Income, it will happen, which will ease the transition to a fully automated future. ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914/319 "2015-08-22T13:06:56Z")
Awesome. I saw a version of the idea being shared on Facebook: [What would a world with guaranteed money for everyone look like?](http://fusion.net/video/183385/what-would-a-world-with-guaranteed-money-for-everyone-look-like/) ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914/320 "2015-08-22T15:42:03Z")
> [@SlackerInc](#): > > Awesome. I saw a version of the idea being shared on Facebook: > > [What would a world with guaranteed money for everyone look like?](http://fusion.net/video/183385/what-would-a-world-with-guaranteed-money-for-everyone-look-like/) Kinda simplistic, but I suppose he is going for a broad audience. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914.md?page=15) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-when-the-robots-peacefully-take-over/608914.md?page=17)