Jobs Replaced by Bots

Quotes from Bill Gates via Business Insider

Bill Gates: People Don't Realize How Many Jobs Will Soon Be Replaced By Software Bots

Big changes are coming to the labor market that people and governments aren't prepared for, Bill Gates believes.

Speaking at Washington, D.C., economic think tank The American Enterprise Institute on Thursday, Gates said that within 20 years, a lot of jobs will go away, replaced by software automation ("bots" in tech slang, though Gates used the term "software substitution").

This is what he said:

"Software substitution, whether it's for drivers or waiters or nurses … it's progressing. ...  Technology over time will reduce demand for jobs, particularly at the lower end of skill set. ...  20 years from now, labor demand for lots of skill sets will be substantially lower. I don’t think people have that in their mental model."

 

He's not the only one predicting this gloomy scenario for workers. In January, the Economist ran a big profile naming over a dozen jobs sure to be taken over by robots in the next 20 years, including telemarketers, accountants and retail workers.

Gates believes that the tax codes are going to need to change to encourage companies to hire employees, including, perhaps, eliminating income and payroll taxes altogether. He's also not a fan of raising the minimum wage, fearing that it will discourage employers from hiring workers in the very categories of jobs that are most threatened by automation.
He explained:

"When people say we should raise the minimum wage. I worry about what that does to job creation ... potentially damping demand in the part of the labor spectrum that I’m most worried about."

Bill Gates - Bots are Coming

Bill Gates: People Don't Realize How Many Jobs Will Soon Be Replaced By Software Bots

Bill Gates wrote recently in Business Insider that bots will soon be taking the place of people in mundane jobs.  Here's his comments about Software Bots.

Apple Robots - Robotics

For the past decade, the company of Apple has been know for its innovation and sense of style.  It has displayed that with products like the iPod, iPhone and iPad.  So far all of these products have been a piece of electronic equipment that a person carries with him or her.  It is a tool that the user takes with them and controls it as they see fit.

It is my opinion that in the near future Apple will branch out into the field of robotics.  Companies like Google have already made the leap into robotic control with things like their self driving cars.  Recently Google acquired the company Nest, which produces electronics to control a persons home.  It is only a matter of time before they announce Google Home.  A hardware and software system where a person can turn off lights, change the thermostat and call the fire department if smoke is detected.

The company Google has always been great at releasing products and pushing the limits of what a company can do.  However Apple has always been the best at knowing what the consumer really wants.  If you hand someone an iPad who has never even seen a computer before, it will only take them a matter of seconds before they are touching things on the screen and opening apps.  Apple knows that simplicity is the key to universal accessibility.  Where as Google has created things like Google+ which hardly anyone uses.  Apple knows what is cool, what people want and the best form factor to give it to them.

It's been over 80 years since the idea of robots living with humans was thought up. 

        

And since then there have been only glimpses and hints at what it could really be.  Eventually that time will come when we all have a robot living in our homes with us.  Perhaps it will be another 80 years from now, but i think it will be much sooner, maybe only 8 years.

I am sure that somewhere on the campus of Apple there are think tanks coming up with crazy ideas as to where the company can branch out.  They are thinking, what markets can Apple fill a gap.  They probably have names like iBots, iRobots or iRobotics.  But in keeping with Apples sense of simplicity, they will probably go with iBots.  Apple Robots incorporated into peoples lives. 

I'm sure at first it will not be the physical robot in the home, doing dishes and cooking dinner.  But rather hidden hardware and software that controls things with the sound of your voice.  Something similar to Star Trek where the captain said "Computer...calculate the distance to the nearest star system."  Apple already has something like this in their iPhone with Siri.  But in the future you will not need to be carrying your phone, if you are in your home, you will be in the computer.  "iHome...turn the heat up to 70 degrees."

Purchase Domain - iBots.com

Several months ago i purchased the domain name ibots.com.  I was very excited to own a very marketable, 15 year old name, which was created in 1999.  It was my intent at the time to develop a website devoted to:

• business intelligence
• business analytics
• Apple robotics

However due to lack of available free time I have not been able to work on it and create the website that i envisioned.  So instead, I am considering selling the domain. 

In the future I may be listing the domain on Sedo, Afternic, Flippa and GoDaddy for bidding, but until then i am going to wait to see what offers i receive directly.  If you would like to purchase the domain ibots.com you can contact me directly through this site, using the Contact Form on the right.

Please contact me with any questions you may have.