Will Humans Become Unnecessary? The Horizon of the Workless Era 2020s

Will Humans Become Unnecessary? The Horizon of the Workless Era 2020s

As artificial intelligence externalizes intelligence and begins to detach the human role, being employed itself is becoming a privilege. Yuval Noah Harari tells us that contrary to how the Industrial Revolution created a working class, the next revolution will create a "useless class. This is not unemployment, but a new form of marginalization: employability. As artificial intelligence permanently outperforms humans in a growing number of fields, the many could be excluded from the market.

But the future of employment is not simple. The International Monetary Fund analyzes that 60% of jobs in developed countries will come under the influence of AI, indicating that its utility is both a boon and a threat. Globally, 40% are in the sphere of influence, and the jobs will not disappear completely, but their content will change rapidly. The International Labor Organization warns that the impact will be more concentrated on clerical and women workers in higher income countries, while amplification rather than replacement will be the norm.

The World Economic Forum paints a picture of simultaneous replacement and creation by AI, with business projections of 92 million jobs disappearing and 78 million jobs being created, indicating a future in which the "content" of skills needed, rather than the total number of jobs, will be renewed. The OECD estimates that about 28% of jobs are at high risk, with education and regional disparities separating the lines of survival.

When this shift is read alongside Marx's theory of alienation, the depth of the crisis comes to mind: 19th century alienation was the enclosure to labor; 21st century alienation is the exclusion from labor. Just as capital turned nature and labor into objects of deprivation, data capitalism transforms attention and even emotions into computational resources. The right to make decisions is seen as more high-value for algorithms, and the average human being may be considered "surplus.

So how do we avoid the emergence of a useless class? We need to redesign our jobs and separate the parts that should be delegated to AI from the core that can only be carried out by humans. Dialogue, ethics, crossing borders, and creativity. This is where the human role should be placed. In addition, we need to put in place a system for short-term relearning of skills and a safety net to support the transition. The International Monetary Fund recommends updating the tax system and public investment to reduce growing inequality.

Ultimately, the question is not, "Will the jobs stay? The question is not, "Will there be jobs left? If the answer is wrong, humans will quietly lose their role as mere byproducts of technology. But if we can honestly look at our strengths and limitations, and reweave our roles as technology advances, Harari's vision of the future will not be a prophecy of catastrophe, but an averted history.