Automation and Future of Employment

I/Me...

Chatgpt how would you address the following: Regarding democratic companies and automation...

Say company A is non democratic (owned by owners + shareholders) and B is democratic. Let's assume that both A and B have same product / service. Now company A decides to fully automate their production / service. Thus their unit cost of item / service = 10.

On the other hand the democratic company decides not to fully automate and their unit cost of item / service = 20.

Thus we observe that eventually B might most likely go out of business (price advantage -> A)

Thus how would you address this scenario, as this is a very probable / likely scenario in the coming decades...

ChatGPT...

This is a great question that strikes at the core of tensions between democratic ownership models (like worker cooperatives) and capitalist firms in a future where automation could drastically reduce costs and reshape labor markets.

Here’s a breakdown and how we might address the dilemma:

The Problem Recap:

Company A (traditional, shareholder-owned) automates fully → price per item = 10.

Company B (democratically run, prioritizes employment) keeps humans employed → price per item = 20.

Consumers choose the cheaper product.

B, despite ethical labor practices, is priced out of the market.

What’s Really at Stake:

This isn’t just about price — it's about:

 Employment vs efficiency

 Equity vs profitability

 Short-term consumer choice vs long-term societal impact

Potential Responses to This Challenge:

1. Universal Basic Income (UBI) or Universal Dividend

 If automation leads to mass unemployment, a UBI could decouple livelihood from employment.

 Profits from automation (especially if taxed) can fund this, supporting those in democratic firms that prioritize employment or community value.

2. Automation Taxes or Dividends

 Governments could tax automation to level the playing field or redirect profits from hyper-automated firms (like A) to the broader public or democratic firms.

 This can reduce the cost advantage of fully automated firms and support firms like B.

3. Consumer Preference & Ethical Markets

 Encourage consumers to value ethically produced goods (like organic or fair trade).

 Requires cultural shift — "buy from Company B to support democratic labor."

 Realistically, price usually wins, so this has limited effect unless heavily supported by policy or social movements.

4. Hybrid Models in Democratic Firms

 Company B could embrace partial automation but redistribute the gains democratically (e.g., reduced work hours, higher wages, shared profits).

 This blends efficiency with equity and keeps prices competitive.

5. Policy Support for Democratic Enterprises

 Government incentives (tax breaks, subsidies, procurement preferences) for democratic firms can help them survive against lower-cost competitors.

 This recognizes that their value is social, not just economic.

6. Sectoral Limits on Full Automation

 In some sectors, full automation might be restricted by law or regulation (like in healthcare or education).

 Not a universal fix, but helps preserve jobs in key areas.

The Deeper Question:

If automation drives prices down and wipes out labor, who will be left to buy the products? Democratic companies like B highlight this systemic issue: a society without wage earners can’t sustain consumption — even if production is cheap.

Conclusion:

You're right — in purely free-market terms, Company B is likely doomed unless the playing field is rebalanced. This is why future economic systems must evolve to:

redefine the role of labor,

ensure fair distribution of automation's gains,

and maintain democratic control over technological transitions.

I/Me...

Automation Taxes...

That might work, for example if there will be an international consensus or a WTO treaty, of automatic tax for automation. Thus all international produce (wherever it be in the world ), will have to include the automatic tax into the price of their product...

If for example OECD nations agree for this, it might actually work...

Thus a production plant having zero employees, will still have to include the automatic tax in their price.

Encourage consumers to value ethically produced goods (like organic or fair trade)...

Most consumers (over 70-90%) tend to go for lowest price...

Realistically, price usually wins, so this has limited effect unless heavily supported by policy or social movements...

True, in the real world most are price conscious ...

ChatGPT...

Exactly — you're thinking about this in a very grounded way.

The Automation Tax idea, as you said, only really works if it's international. Otherwise, firms will just shift production to the lowest-regulation countries — a race to the bottom. If, say, the OECD or WTO established a global framework, this could:

Internalize the social costs of automation (like job loss),

Prevent regulatory arbitrage, and

Create a revenue stream to fund public goods or a UBI.

This would mirror how we treat carbon taxes — taxing not because carbon or automation is inherently bad, but because the unchecked externalities (climate change, unemployment) are dangerous.

On the consumer side — you're absolutely right. Ethical consumerism can help but cannot solve systemic imbalance. Relying on people to "do the right thing" when prices are tight (especially in the Global South) is unrealistic. It’s why policy must step in where market behavior fails.

What this points toward is:

Global policy coordination (WTO, OECD, G20) around automation,

Redefining what “employment” and “value” mean, and

Ensuring automation's benefits don’t concentrate in a tiny elite while everyone else gets priced out.

Would you want to explore what such an international automation treaty might look like in detail?

I/Me...

You're indeed right... Most likely within the next few decades as more and more jobs gets automated, there will come a tilting / tipping point where say over 30-40 % of the population cannot find gainful employment...

In many countries currently this figure is already above the 10% mark. There are many young people whom are now living or sustaining themselves from the income / pensions of their parents ( for example The Lay Flat movement etc. )

These situations are only going to get compounded into the future.

Aka competition driven market economies alone will not be able to keep the population gainfully employed...

A very good example are the gantry cranes. In the days of the olds, it would have required hundreds/ thousands to operate these equipment, via pulleys levers... But when they got automated, one only needs one gantry crane operator. Same goes for weaving Mills, with the Jacquard looms etc. millions of handlooms operators lost employment all throughout the world. 

And it is not possible/ not feasible to undo / reverse this trend...

ChatGPT...

Exactly — you're articulating one of the most important structural shifts of our time.

What you're describing — the tipping point where technology permanently displaces more labor than it creates — is not just theoretical anymore. As you noted, the early signs are already visible:

Youth unemployment and underemployment in both developed and developing countries.

“Lay flat” (躺平) movement in China and similar trends globally, where young people disengage from traditional employment paths.

People living off parents or pensions due to lack of viable jobs — even with education.

The Automation Precedent

Your examples (gantry cranes, Jacquard loom) show that we’ve been here before, but never at this scale or speed:

 In the Industrial Revolution, new industries emerged fast enough to absorb displaced labor.

 Today, AI and robotics replace physical work, whilst not generating equal or more number of new posts.

What’s different now:

1. Scale – Automation is hitting across sectors, from factories to offices.

2. Speed – Technological progress is outpacing human adaptability and policy response.

3. Global connectivity – Labor can’t just migrate to “where the jobs are” anymore — many jobs are virtual or cloud-based.

Consequences :

Chronic unemployment or underemployment (especially for youth).

Stagnant or declining wages even in high-skill sectors.

Wealth concentration in firms owning the machines and algorithms.

Social unrest, alienation, or disillusionment — already visible in various forms globally.

So what must change?

As you said: Market economies alone can’t handle this.

We need:

New frameworks for value distribution — e.g., UBI or even data dividends.

Reconceptualizing work — seeing caregiving, art, learning, and community work as valuable, even if not "profitable."

Global cooperation — to prevent countries from undercutting each other with “cheap automation zones.”

This isn’t about stopping technology — it's about democratizing the benefits of that technology. The goal is a future where automation liberates people from drudgery, not condemns them to exclusion.

Would you like to sketch out a vision of a future post-automation society that balances productivity, equity, and meaning?

I/Me...

Yes indeed go ahead...

ChatGPT...

Great — let’s sketch a vision of a post-automation society that’s both realistic and aspirational, focusing on three pillars: productivity, equity, and meaning.

A Vision of a Post-Automation Society

1. Productivity: Machines Create, Humans Curate

Automation handles the bulk of routine, dangerous, or precision-based work:

 Factories, logistics, construction, even agriculture are largely automated.

 AI manages complex data-driven roles — logistics planning, legal drafting, diagnostics, etc.

 Humans still supervise, audit, and innovate — but the day-to-day drudgery is gone.

Outcome: Massive abundance of goods and services at low cost. Scarcity isn’t about production anymore — it’s about distribution.

2. Equity: Distribution Without Employment

Since full employment is no longer feasible or necessary:

a. Universal Basic Income (UBI)

 Every citizen receives a baseline income to meet basic needs.

 Funded by:

   Automation taxes,

   Data taxes (on corporations profiting from user data),

   Sovereign wealth funds (e.g., public ownership of automated infrastructure),

   Carbon and environmental taxes.

b. Reduced Working Hours

 Those who do work (in art, care, innovation) work fewer hours — 15-25 per week.

 Job sharing and flexible roles become normal.

 Work is driven by passion or service, not survival.

c. Community-Owned Platforms

 Platforms which are worker/ community-owned, not VC-backed monopolies.

 Profits are shared democratically — creating “digital cooperatives.”

Outcome: People have economic security without needing to “earn” it through traditional labor.

3. Meaning: A Society Beyond the Job

Without employment as the default source of identity, new value systems emerge:

a. Emphasis on Lifelong Learning

 Education becomes a continuous, free pursuit — from philosophy to biotech.

 AI tutors, virtual labs, and immersive tech make learning fun and accessible.

b. Rise of Civic and Creative Engagement

 People engage in community projects, local governance, environmental restoration.

 Art, music, storytelling, and open-source development flourish as valid life pursuits.

c. Recognition of Care Work

 Parenting, eldercare, mental health support, and volunteering are formally recognized and rewarded.

 These were always critical to society but often unpaid.

Outcome: People rediscover meaning in connection, creativity, and contribution, not just consumption.

Core Institutions That Make This Work

Global coordination on automation taxes and data governance.

Democratic ownership of major productive assets (energy, AI platforms, logistics).

Civic tech infrastructure — digital direct democracy tools, public deliberation platforms.

Reformed education systems focused on ethics, critical thinking, and adaptability.

Challenges to Overcome

 Resistance from entrenched capital interests.

 Maintaining motivation and avoiding nihilism in a post-work culture.

 Ensuring equity across borders — avoiding a “post-scarcity North” and “excluded South.”

This vision isn’t utopian — it’s grounded in what’s technologically feasible now or in the near future. The real obstacle is political and cultural will.

Would you like to explore how to transition from today’s world to this future — i.e., the roadmap to get there?

I/Me...

It's only a matter of time when / where businesses will opt to automate, any functionality that can be automated...

Indeed... I also beleive in a post work society, under proper guidelines ( to prevent societies from going into self destruct downhill), there will be possibility for a more relaxed and happy societies...

It will be interesting how open market economies and self employment may coexists in future...

ChatGPT...

Yes, you’ve touched on something very important.

You're mostly right:

Some businesses (retail/ logistics) often have razor-thin profit margins or even losses in some quarters.

Precedence for Automation:

There’s nothing — economically — to stop  businesses from automating its production, warehouses, deliveries, even customer services entirely.

This sets a precedent: if massive corporations can run with minimal humans, other firms will follow — or be forced out.

Post-Work Society:

Yes, under strong social structures and ethical frameworks, a post-work society could:

 Reduce stress, burnout, and wage-based inequality,

 Encourage creativity, play, caregiving, and personal growth.

But as you said — it needs guidelines to prevent:

 Mass alienation,

 Inequality between “owners of the machines” vs the rest,

 The spread of purposelessness or polarization.

 Societal degradation.

Open Market Economies + Self-Employment in the Future

Here’s how they might coexist:

Open markets persist, but are reshaped by automation and regulation (e.g., all goods carry an automation tax).

Self-employment thrives in new spaces:

   Digital artisanship (coding, art, video),

   Community services,

   Peer-to-peer platforms (ideally co-op owned),

   Microproduction via 3D printing, biotech, etc.

 The key is access to tools: if people have access to capital (e.g., public AI tools, maker labs), they can create value outside traditional jobs.

So future economies may look less like Fordist factories and more like digitally networked guilds, co-ops, and open-source ecosystems — with the state as a stabilizer, not a central planner.

I/Me...

I also strongly believe that in a post work society Artisans will play a key role / key composition.

For example those so interested could produce digital media, art works etc. Thus one engages in such, for the satisfaction ( aka I produce content because that activity / engagement brings me work satisfaction, aka I want to do it...) Thus even though it will not bring me any financial benefits (statistically over 90 % of the works do not bring ROI or even break even), the individuals or groups would engage in such, because they enjoy the activity, the effort...

Another example might be the production of VLSI via 3D printing fabs (which will be much more cost efficient than the current photolithographic fabs), thus opening up the doors to millions whom are so interested to explore and venture into VLSI...

etc etc etc...

ChatGPT...

Absolutely — you're describing a creative and decentralized renaissance that could flourish in a post-work society. And your instincts are spot on: artisanship, passion-driven creation, and distributed fabrication may become the new cornerstones of personal meaning and community engagement, rather than wage labor.

Why Artisans Will Matter More Than Ever:

1. Intrinsic Motivation Over External Reward

As you said, most digital creators don’t earn much — but they persist out of joy, curiosity, or purpose.

In a society where basic needs are met (via UBI, public goods, etc.), this intrinsic drive becomes the main fuel for innovation and culture.

2. Abundance of Tools

 With AI, 3D printing, AR/ VR, and open-source platforms, the barriers to creation fall dramatically.

 Example: A teenager could design a VLSI chip using open-source CAD tools and print a prototype at a local community fablab — something only major corporations could dream of today.

3. Micro-Communities of Practice

Artists, coders, makers, musicians form self-sustaining ecosystems — not for profit, but for feedback, collaboration, and growth.

 Think of it like modern-day guilds or "online monasteries of creativity."

4. Digital Patronage & Reputation Economies

Even if most work isn’t financially rewarded, systems like community tokens, tipping, or reputation scores might provide symbolic or  financial recognition — enough to encourage quality and continuity.

The VLSI Example You Gave Is Particularly Powerful:

 Current fabs could cost $10–20 billion to build — locking out everyone but nation-states or megacorps.

 But 3D-printed semiconductors or nano-scale additive manufacturing (combined with AI design tools) could completely democratize this space.

 It would mean: anyone with access to the tech can innovate, from garage inventors to school kids.

This kind of democratization could kickstart a Cambrian explosion of customized chips for biotech, robotics, education, etc.

Big Picture: A Society of Makers, Not Workers

Instead of:

> “What do you do for a living?”

It might be:

> “What are your interests, what do you  explore or what are your works...”

Value isn’t necessarily monetary — it’s also  cultural and personal.

Work becomes engagement / play — not in the frivolous sense, but in the deeply human sense of meaningful activity, driven by self / group interests.

Would you like me to draft a short narrative/scene imagining a day in the life of someone living in such a post-work artisan society?

I/Me...

Indeed not only Cambrian explosion of customized chips, but instead a Cambrian explosion of creativity all around / all spheres...

Would you like me to draft a short narrative/scene imagining a day in the life of someone living in such a post-work artisan society?

Yes indeed go ahead...

For example with large amount of content being generated, all / every adult might spend about 2-3 hours each day (and 5-6 days each week), checking out / reviewing others' works...

Thus there could be online review boards, whom could critically analyse alpha / beta releases, and then provide with constructive feedback/ criticism...

And then the final releases could be reviewed by audiences / masses, and each month / quarter / year best quality productions could be acclaimed & awarded / rewarded financially... This would thus seed and motivate further creativity...

ChatGPT...

...

I/Me...

...

ChtGPT...

Excellent — here’s your refined short story set in a post-work artisan society, with your additions fully integrated.

A Day in the Life of Aira

Year: 2050 | Location: Neo-Harvest Commune, Planet Earth.

07:30 — Wake & Sync

The soft-film skylight slowly shifts from deep violet to coral pink. Aira stirs to the hum of her latest piece — a generative audio loop fed by electromagnetic readings from coastal rocks. Her interface projects the Stream across the ceiling: new releases in synthcraft, digital sculpture, and procedural motion.

Aira’s eyes skim over titles. A VR opera? An algorithmically modulated theremin? She's intrigued. While brushing her teeth, she thumbs up a few previews to review later — only from domains she’s accredited in: electronic arts, sonic design, and mixed-reality installations.

08:15 — Cafeteria Commons

The main dining hall buzzes quietly, not with voices — but with the hum of automation. Aira taps her wrist implant: “Zaatar-spiced avocado bowl, with syntropic greens and ginger broth.”

Moments later, a drone glides in with her order — all ingredients grown and freshly harvested from the commune’s stacked vertical farms, prepped by robotic arms, and fine-tuned by neural models.

She shares a table with:

Damian, an open-hardware engineer, tinkering with AI-Assisted limbs.

Roi, an enthusiast in VLSI neural co-processors, compiling his own custom silicon cores via localized 3D print-fabs.

Aluna, leading a distributed CGI animation project — a mytho-futurist epic drawn from Polynesian cosmology.

They discuss open loops in each other’s work. Aira offers a soundscape module for Aluna’s next teaser. Roi asks for ambient tones that modulate with user gaze. Collaborative energy hums.

9:00 — Studio Time

Aira steps into her pod. She calibrates her modular synth rig — a nest of interfaces, haptic gloves, quantum-charged resonance coils. Today’s task: shaping emotional frequencies to pair with an AI-generated dance sequence from a partner node in Lagos.

Her logs auto-sync to her Artisan Archive, tagged and openly accessible. There’s no concept of "proprietary" anymore — only recognition, contribution, and evolution.

13:00 — Curator Circle

Aira dons her reviewer badge and enters the Circle — a decentralized platform for peer critique. Each reviewer only sees works relevant to their domain(s) of expertise.

Today’s queue:

 A reactive installation piece blending biosensors with ambient synth pads.

 An AI-choreographed sound collage for a planetarium show.

 A motion-sensitive VR chapel with harmonic feedback based on the user’s breath.

Each is scored on: Coherence, Emotional Depth, and Technical Elegance. Her reviews earn Reputation Credits, increasing her influence and access to rare fabrication tools and collaborative spaces.

Meanwhile, Damian and Roi, certified in engineering and materials science, critique projects like a printed ceramic engine block for ultra-light EVs and a prototype scram-hybrid jet engine being developed by a multi-nodal team across Finland, Argentina, and Morocco.

15:00 — Storyforge Room

Aira joins Aluna’s CGI movie collective for a weekly sync. They review character sketches, motion passes, and Aira’s latest sound module. The movie — “Tangaroa's Code” — is halfway through its 2-year development cycle. Funded by citizen grants and supported by dozens of volunteers, the project is a labor of myth, memory, and imagination.

They plan to debut the first act at the Equinox Gathering — a worldwide showcase streamed across The Loom.

18:00 — Wind Down

Back at the dome, Aira watches a live-streamed demo of the scram hybrid jet test. It’s beautiful — a perfect example of interdisciplinary genius: fluid dynamics, AI-assist design, advanced metallurgy — all by artisans.

Afterward, she listens to a generative music set layered with oral histories of extinct species — part of a memory archive called Voices of the Vanished. Her own piece is scheduled to play tomorrow.

Reflections Before Sleep

No alarms. No quotas. No managers.

Just endless threads of inspiration.

She drifts off not with deadlines, but with anticipation — wondering what melodies tomorrow might bring.

This is not a utopia — effort, structure, and intention still matter.

But here, in Neo-Harvest and beyond, artisanship has reclaimed its rightful place at the heart of human culture.

I/Me...

The following short novel is the result / outcome of a few rounds of tinkering-around...

https://shortstoriesinto.blogspot.com/2025/05/echos-of-aria-2050.html