Basic income in the age of Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming the world at an unprecedented pace, raising concerns about job displacement and widening income inequality. One potential solution that has gained traction is the concept of Basic Income. Basic income holds great promise in mitigating the potential negative effects of AI and ensuring a more equitable society.
The rise of AI and automation brings forth a fundamental shift in our labour market. Many traditional jobs are being rendered obsolete, leaving workers vulnerable to unemployment and economic instability. Basic income, an unconditional cash transfer provided to all citizens, can serve as a crucial safety net. It ensures that individuals have the means to meet their basic needs and adapt to the changing job landscape without falling into poverty.
One of the greatest advantages of basic income is its potential to foster innovation and entrepreneurship. By providing individuals with a guaranteed income, it empowers people to take risks and explore new avenues without the fear of financial ruin. This can unleash a wave of creativity and enable individuals to pursue their passions, leading to the development of new businesses and industries.
Basic income acknowledges the inherent value of unpaid work and promotes a more balanced society. AI has the potential to automate many routine tasks, freeing up time for individuals to engage in caregiving, community service, and artistic pursuits.
Critics argue that basic income may disincentivize work and create a culture of dependency. However, evidence from pilot programs and experiments around the world suggests otherwise.
While Basic Income alone cannot solve all the challenges posed by AI, it is a crucial component. It can alleviate the anxieties associated with job displacement, encourage innovation, and promote social cohesion.
The above editorial was written entirely by ChatGPT, an AI program. Only the following instructions were given: Imagine you are a journalist, writing an opinion piece for a magazine. The topic: Is Basic Income a good idea with the rise of artificial intelligence? In the coming months, we will be further exploring how AI will dramatically change how people and organizations work.
I expect that AI algorithms will be set by the owners of the winning AI platforms to write this article condemning this POV very soon. AI is another leap toward group think.
Eliminate welfare, E.I, ALL government assistance , CPP, WSIB etc etc, and all government jobs related to these services, then pay EVERY canadian a supplement each month. I bet it would be cheaper in the long run than the bloated bureaucracy is now.
Not sure which version of ChatGPT you used, but this version failed to explore the different versions of Basic Income legislation and favoured an unworkable one. No government in its right mind (or with complete or even good AI data) would give Basic Income benefits to all citizens. No economy can sustain that. The idea is not to raise the income of everyone so that the gap between rich and poor and the prices to enforce that gap remain but to lessen the gap. Any feasible basic income program must be means tested.
Also, this version of AI failed to recognize the tremendous difference in predicted impact of AI on the income of first versus third world countries. AI is predicted to grow the gap between rich and poor countries. As it becomes cheaper to manufacture clothing in New York than in Vietnam and Bangaladesh, third world countries will lose major staples of their economies while Silicon Valley et al. become wealthier and wealthier.
Rule by AI data controlled by a handful of corporatist billionaires is something we probably want to avoid.
AI has the potential to grow the knowledge gap between rich and poor across the globe, as only those with the means to purchase AI products will grow the knowledge needed to survive and thrive in new economies. Some even predict an evolutionary leap from homo sapiens to some kind of cyborg race as AI fuses with biotech to create fully-conscious AI-informed life forms that can possibly breathe under water and in outer space, making them particularly adaptable to climate change.
This AI-generated article illustrates the limits to current AI-generated opinion. AI opinions are only as good as the AI database. The hope for human intelligence this highlights is in imagination and discovery. While AI is promising for knowledge growth in science, engineering, architecture, etc., generated by mathematical computation, it is still only as good as its programming and data, and as no database can possibly contain all data (all data would require all past and future facts about the world), there remains a place for human creativity.