On 13 October, I read a survey about how adults in the United States imagine the future of work with AI. Of those surveyed, 65% agreed that if AI makes work less meaningful, people will lose some of their sense of purpose and dignity.[1]
The survey records expectations about the future. It does not establish what will happen or necessarily describe how people in Europe feel. Even so, it got me thinking about a question that does not always come up when we talk about automation.
We tend to focus on the jobs that might change or disappear, or how much time could be saved. But work can also be part of how we see ourselves and how we feel we contribute. In the same survey, 70% of workers said their job was very or extremely important to their sense of meaning and purpose.[2] That does not mean work gives everyone's life meaning in the same way. For some people, it can also be a burden.
I wonder who will decide what we do with any time AI might free up, and which tasks we want to keep doing between people. The survey does not answer that. But perhaps the conversation about AI and employment should also include autonomy, dignity and who gets a say in the decisions.
Eugénie Morant Vermeersch