Jack Ma, Executive Chairman of Alibaba Group Holding, gestures as he
speaks the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos,
Switzerland January 24, 2018. Source: Reuters/Denis Balibouse
ARTIFICIAL Intelligence (AI) is disrupting many industries across the
world. From robots being developed to diagnose disease, to harnessing
the power of natural language processing and machine learning to mimic
human speech patterns for customer service.
There can be no doubt that AI applications will drastically improve many
aspects of daily life. Google has estimated that robots will reach
levels of human intelligence by 2029.
But, with the advancement of AI technology comes the increasing fear
that robots will soon take over our jobs. In fact, IT research firm Gartner estimates that by 2025, a whopping one third of jobs will be replaced by robots and smart machines.
Young girl meets a robot Kuromon Ichiba Market, Ōsaka-shi, Japan. Source: Andy Kelly/Unsplash
Agreeing with this issue is the high-profile technocrat, and founder of Chinese tech giant Alibaba, Jack Ma. At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Ma voiced his vision that machines will one day replace humans in a variety of aspects.
When speaking about the responsibilities of the world’s tech giants,
including Alibaba, Facebook, and Amazon, Ma told the gathering: “…we
have the responsibility to have a good heart, and do something good.
Make sure that everything you do is for the future.”
According to Ma, the latest technologies such as AI and big data pose
themselves as a threat and would disable humans instead of enabling
them.
“People like us have the money and resources and we should spend money
on technology that empowers us and makes life better. AI, Big Data is a
threat to human beings. The AI and robots are going to kill a lot of
jobs, because in the future, these will be done by machines,” he says.
When voicing his opinion on the impact of technology, Ma said: “We are
very lucky because the world is in big transformation mode because of
technology. Though this revolution will create successful leaders and
opportunities, every new technology will also create social problems”.
Mincheng Ni, who lost both his hands in an accident, demonstrates a
Brain Robotics artificial intelligence powered prosthetic hand at CES in
Las Vegas, Nevada, US, January 7, 2018. Source: Reuters/Rick Wilking
Alibaba’s founder then discussed past revolutions of technology and their impact on the world.
“The first technology revolution caused the First World War and the
second technology revolution caused the Second World War. Now we have
the third the tech revolution. If the Third World War happens, it should
be fought against disease, pollution and poverty, not against each
other.”
The Chinese businessman is not alone in his concerns over AI. According to a report by Pew Research, over 70 percent of Americans express wariness or concern about a world where machines perform many of the tasks done by humans.
This article was originally published on our sister website Tech Wire Asia.
