To be utterly despondent about AI

Better than a bored or even abusive human.

There’s a lot of conflating of can do with should do on here.

Robot care workers would no doubt be great to fill the labour gaps and improve overall care. But are people really just going to want to be cared for by a soulless robot?

Oh sorry I see you already answered. Unless very literally the physical side of caring it will be affected for sure.

Which profession? I can't think of one that won't be affected.

I don't think most people are happy about it, just aware that it will happen whether we like it or not.

New Scientist tested out a couple of AI agents (apps using MCP) that claim to be able to do your stuff for you. There's some good news (for now): “There’s a lot of overhype right now. It’s certainly not going to be within the next few years that all jobs are gone or that autonomous agents are doing everything.”

Archive link: https://archive.ph/DClqp#selection-1473.80-1473.257

I wouldn’t say fool proof as we just can’t anticipate what’s going to happen, but anything that you use your hands for I think is relatively safe: trades, caring (my job role), chefs. Not a lot really when you write it down. 🫣

I'm sceptical because we were told in the 80s we needed to learn to use our leisure time because there'd be no jobs. And AI is all well and good but even if a shop says x is in stock of its not where it should be it's a human brain that usually finds it.

I work in dementia care. ☺️

You may be right but it seems madness to keep pushing it up at this juncture.

Just let it fall drastically even, if not those growing up reaching twenty will ask why we didn’t

Policy makers and researchers seem not to talk to each other

I think there are some upsides to AI and a less populated planet. We just need to think ahead better than now.

Out of interest which careers do you think are most fool proof? If you wish to share

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/jul/09/grok-ai-praised-hitler-antisemitism-x-ntwnfb

And another slice of this fresh hell.

Re AIs not 'knowing' stuff: fellow data bores might have already realised the significance of Anthropic's Model Context Protocol, released last year. It's a marvellously straightforward method for AI tools to access information. The owners/managers of data stores only need to provide an index of the information they have, which LLMs can query whenever they need to. Using MCP, any app can then query an LLM to get that information.

This means a retail chatbot can easily answer your questions about stock, a legal helper can examine relevant laws and case histories, and so on. It has the potential to get rid of the context problem almost completely, and it's rolling out very fast. Only one human - the app developer - has to anticipate the kind of information users will need for good contextual answers. If it turns out they need more, developers can easily add more MCP calls.

"Instead of just answering questions, agents can now perform useful, multi-step tasks — like retrieving data, summarizing documents, or saving content to a file": Medium. If this doesn't sound very seismic, it's probably because the AI you're using is already doing it. But when an app instantly pulls customer information, profiles each customer, cross-matches the profiles with personality characteristics, analyses purchasing patterns, forecasts their budgets, then identifies the product they're going to want next and when, it's doing better than most human salespeople.

@Jewel1968
Full disclosure…I used ChatGPT to create the list but asked it to exclude generative AI and just focus on machine learning, computer vision, robotics etc.

🏥 Healthcare

1. Early disease detection
2. AI models detect cancer, retinal disease, and heart conditions earlier and more accurately than many traditional methods (e.g. radiology, dermatology).
3. Drug discovery & development
4. AI accelerates drug research, simulating molecular interactions and shortening the R&D timeline.
5. Operational efficiency
6. Hospital staffing, patient flow, and resource allocation are being optimized through AI-driven systems.
7. Personalized medicine
8. AI tailors treatments to individual patients based on genetics, environment, and lifestyle.

1. Climate modeling & prediction
2. AI enhances simulations to better predict extreme weather, climate change impacts, and carbon cycles.
3. Wildlife monitoring
4. AI analyzes audio, camera traps, and satellite data to track endangered species and detect poaching.
5. Energy efficiency
6. Smart grids and buildings use AI to optimize energy usage and reduce waste.

1. Autonomous vehicles (AVs)
2. While not yet fully mainstream, AVs could reduce traffic fatalities, increase accessibility, and reduce emissions.
3. Traffic flow optimization
4. AI predicts congestion and dynamically manages traffic signals to improve flow in cities.
5. Predictive maintenance
6. AI detects mechanical issues in vehicles, trains, and planes before they fail, increasing safety.

1. Fraud detection
2. AI identifies fraudulent tax claims, social benefit misuse, and procurement anomalies.
3. Disaster response
4. AI models help first responders predict and manage disaster zones (e.g., wildfires, earthquakes).
5. Public health surveillance
6. AI models track disease outbreaks, antimicrobial resistance, and vaccine coverage.

1. Adaptive learning platforms
2. AI personalizes learning based on student pace, strengths, and weaknesses (e.g. Khan Academy, Duolingo).
3. Language translation & accessibility
4. AI-powered translation tools support multilingual education and accessibility for disabled learners.
5. Teacher support
6. AI handles admin work and helps identify students who need intervention.

1. Cybersecurity
2. AI detects threats and anomalies in real-time, helping defend systems from hacking and ransomware.
3. Industrial safety
4. Computer vision detects unsafe behavior or environmental hazards on factory floors and construction sites.
5. Content moderation
6. AI helps flag and remove harmful content on social platforms (though not perfectly).

1. Supply chain optimization
2. AI forecasts demand, routes logistics, and manages inventory in real time.
3. Financial services
4. AI improves credit scoring, detects fraud, and supports customer service automation.
5. Manufacturing quality control
6. AI vision systems inspect goods faster and more accurately than human inspectors.

1. Healthcare in underserved regions
2. AI chatbots, diagnostic tools, and mobile health apps extend care in low-resource areas.
3. Remote sensing for agriculture
4. AI interprets satellite data to guide smallholder farmers on when to plant, irrigate, or harvest.
5. Inclusive design
6. Tools like real-time sign language translation or AI-powered screen readers make digital spaces more accessible.

I’m lucky enough to be in a profession that (hopefully) won’t be affected by AI. We are also looking at our banking habits if there might be cyber attacks (watch the link I posted back in the thread). Also considering the impact it will have on our children’s futures and thinking about how to guide them into any career options that won’t be affected.

Other than that, I don’t think there’s anything else we can do, just keep our fingers crossed and hope for the best. I genuinely think it’s out of our control.

A lot of posters seem convinced that people will be much happier to stay at home for everything - never leave to get their shopping, never go for a day out to look at something (to use the example of a boat show). Men who are used to travelling for work, going out every day, going to the pub after work…they’ll be happy to spend every day at home with their noisy offspring?

Some people have short memories - we tried that during Covid, and although there might have been some benefits, we recognised that humans need to spend time together, and leave their houses occasionally. We don’t want to live in isolation, even if AI makes it possible.

And one big issue with falling birth rates is fewer people paying taxes to support increasing numbers of pensioners. AI won’t help that.

So AI will do all the jobs - including building, maintaining and repairing themselves

the non rich will no longer have any money to buy any products from the numerous AI run businesses.

no one will pay tax, NI or pensions

the businesses then go bust due to no customers other than the 5% who are rich

the rich lose their income as their investments no longer make money and the stock market has crashed

or maybe somewhere along the way the CEOs of the businesses will go shit we have no customers we better employ some humans

I imagine there will be UBI, so we will have money to spend, alongside having part time jobs as we won't need everyone working full time. More time to volunteer, grow food? I'm not sure how it will work but I watched the video linked in one of the replies, and the big tech inventors definitely think UBI will happen.
UBI would replace benefits and state pension too I guess.
Whether that's a good thing or not, it probably is going to happen.

In the more optimistic sci-fi, humanity has formed some sort of world federation where the benefits of technology keep everyone safe, healthy and fulfilled. There's often no money, as people can just have what they need or want. Everyone chooses an occupation according to their ability and preferences.

It's a possibility - although even the most hopeful creators seem to think we'd need devastating wars and/or natural disasters before arriving at the logical solution! There are ways of moving towards this scenario without killing everyone; the stumbling block is that it requires extremely strong, well-funded, altruistic governments co-operating to wrest the power out of corporate hands (or force them to operate on much smaller profits).

Leaving it to market forces is more likely to result in a Blade Runner / Hunger Games type of future. On one hand, I'd like to be here to see how it works out ... on the other, I'm glad I won't be!

How are you preparing yourself? Genuine question.

I don’t think birth rates will fall fast enough to cope with what AI is going to do to the job market though? Happy to be wrong about that though.

It’s not the best idea and nor is the current political trend to lament falling birth rates.

We don’t want millions unemployed in twenty years.