Benvenuto nel Poliverso

Scusateci: stiamo avendo un certo ritardo nella distribuzione dei post

AI6YR Ben

6 mesi fa • •

AI6YR Ben
6 mesi fa • •

For Silicon Valley, AI isn’t just about replacing some jobs. It’s about replacing all of them

"...I recently found myself at a dinner in an upstairs room at a restaurant in San Francisco hosted by a venture capital firm. The after-dinner speaker was a tech veteran who, having sold his AI company for hundreds of millions of dollars, has now turned his hand to investing. He had a simple message for the assembled startup founders: the money you can make in AI isn’t limited to the paltry market sizes of previous technology waves. You can replace the world’s workers – which means you can capture their salaries. All of them...."

theguardian.com/commentisfree/…

#AI #aipocalypse #capitalism #jobs #labor

For Silicon Valley, AI isn’t just about replacing some jobs. It’s about replacing all of them

AI will do the thinking, robots will do the doing. What place do humans have in this arrangement – and do tech CEOs care? says Ed Newton-Rex, founder of Fairly Trained

^{Ed Newton-Rex (The Guardian)}

reshared this

in reply to AI6YR Ben

Hypolite Petovan

in reply to AI6YR Ben • 6 mesi fa • •

@AI6YR Ben What infuriates me the most about this view is that the end goal is completely nonsensical. Great, you captured all the salaries, now what? Who's going to buy anything from your company? Or buy your AI-powered robots? And of course, in the process of trying to reach this nonsensical goal, very real harm will be done.

@AI6YR Ben

in reply to AI6YR Ben

Dave Spector

in reply to AI6YR Ben • 6 mesi fa • •

Too bad he didn’t really cover the “less generous” outcome — the real goal. The murder of people who these tech bros don’t think are worth existing in a post-work world. Anyone who believes they are going to give up any of their wealth to fund some kind of “universal basic income” is out of their minds…

Their goal is Solaria. #IYKYK

#iykyk

Questa voce è stata modificata (6 mesi fa)

in reply to Dave Spector

AI6YR Ben

in reply to Dave Spector • 6 mesi fa • •

@Dhmspector Yep, no freaking chance of UBI, IMHO. I suspect I know the same folks referred to in this article (investors) and they're not even going to give you one cent if you're not "economically important" to their own companies.

@Dave Spector

in reply to AI6YR Ben

emeritrix

in reply to AI6YR Ben • 6 mesi fa • •

But, where will their money come from if all the people are dead or starving?

Where do they think value (exchange value) comes from?

Unknown parent

Finitum

Unknown parent • 6 mesi fa • •

@GhostOnTheHalfShell entirely not enough social/public derision applied to end times weirdos that want us all to die for some reason.

@GhostOnTheHalfShell

in reply to AI6YR Ben

HumToTable

in reply to AI6YR Ben • 6 mesi fa • •

*Sigh* I worked with these jerks for years and got a whole TEDtalk about the psychology of this level of arrogance.

in reply to AI6YR Ben

Urzl

in reply to AI6YR Ben • 6 mesi fa • •

I've been saying for years now that employers resent everybody who makes more than $0.

If you're not already a literal slave, they are actively looking to render you unemployed. It was never about self checkout or whether the minimum wage was too high. It was always about American businesses deeply resenting the end of chattel slavery.

We've never collectively figured out how to run a business that pays labor for what it's worth.

reshared this

in reply to Urzl

Stephen Dioxide

in reply to Urzl • 6 mesi fa • •

@gooba42 Yes, we have. It's called a worker co-op.

@Urzl

in reply to Urzl

Kevin Russell

in reply to Urzl • 6 mesi fa • •

@gooba42
Worker owned businesses help. Find some, use them, frequent them.

Businesses with lords who must be obeyed are not necessary. Businesses with mutual respect run well.

@Urzl

in reply to Kevin Russell

Kevin Russell

in reply to Kevin Russell • 6 mesi fa • •

@gooba42
Wouldnt it be fun if a side channel like worker owned businesses suddenly flourished and mutual respect became the path past fascism?

______

Find a Worker Co-op

This directory is a joint project of the U.S. Federation of Worker Cooperatives and the Democracy at Work Institute.

usworker.coop/directory/

#coup #coop #lord #musk #trump #dems

Find a Worker Co-op – U.S. Federation of Worker Cooperatives

^{www.usworker.coop}

#coop #Trump #Musk #coup #lord #dems @Urzl

in reply to Kevin Russell

Stephen Dioxide

in reply to Kevin Russell • 6 mesi fa • •

@kevinrns @gooba42 The fastest route to getting there ("fast" is relative) would be through Baby Boomers selling their businesses to their workers. This is quite possible, and there are case studies, but we could have vastly more.

@Urzl @Kevin Russell

in reply to Stephen Dioxide

Kevin Russell

in reply to Stephen Dioxide • 6 mesi fa • •

@Steve @gooba42
There have been several just as you describe. Instead of selling on retirement several people have transferred ownership to workers.
____

"Founder gifted entire $100,000,000 company to employees after refusing to sell to corporations"

Bob's Red Mill Flour

unilad.com/news/money/bobs-red…

Founder gifted entire $100,000,000 company to employees after refusing to sell to corporations

Bob Moore, who founded Bob's Red Mill, secured the future of his business and its employees before his death.

^{Gregory Robinson (UNILAD)}

@Stephen Dioxide @Urzl

Questa voce è stata modificata (6 mesi fa)

reshared this

in reply to Kevin Russell

Urzl

in reply to Kevin Russell • 6 mesi fa • •

@kevinrns @Steve We need that to become the default.

Too many owners take all the value with them when they leave.

@Stephen Dioxide @Kevin Russell

in reply to Urzl

Kevin Russell

in reply to Urzl • 6 mesi fa • •

@gooba42 @Steve
Better, start your company as a worker cooperative. Don't "look for work" create a worker owned business.

@Stephen Dioxide @Urzl

in reply to Kevin Russell

Stephen Dioxide

in reply to Kevin Russell • 6 mesi fa • •

@kevinrns @gooba42 Each way has its pros and cons. Starting a co-op from scratch gives the workers control at all points in its development. Converting a business to a co-op maintains continuity of an established local business.

ESOPs don't interest me, nor do "B corps."

@Urzl @Kevin Russell

in reply to Kevin Russell

Eric Lawton

in reply to Kevin Russell • 6 mesi fa • •

@kevinrns

Yes.

"Public" corporations are "owned" by shareholders so there is no single owner to retire and leave it to workers.

And even private owners are under pressure to leave to family heirs.

Corporate law and tax structures are designed to encourage that.

@gooba42 @Steve @ai6yr

@Stephen Dioxide @AI6YR Ben @Urzl @Kevin Russell

in reply to Eric Lawton

Stephen Dioxide

in reply to Eric Lawton • 6 mesi fa • •

@EricLawton @kevinrns @gooba42 This is true, but I've been told on multiple occasions that would-be heirs are not showing much interest in taking over the family business, for an assortment of reasons. That leaves three possibilities: shut down entirely, sell to the competition (often a national chain), or sell to the workers.

@Urzl @Kevin Russell @Eric Lawton

in reply to Stephen Dioxide

Eric Lawton

in reply to Stephen Dioxide • 6 mesi fa • •

@Steve

A significant inheritance tax, possibly with low-cost loans to a worker co-op could help to transform capitalism.

Now all¹ we have to do is change the government to one that supports this.
___
1. "All": 😀

@kevinrns @gooba42 @ai6yr

@Stephen Dioxide @AI6YR Ben @Urzl @Kevin Russell

in reply to Eric Lawton

Stephen Dioxide

in reply to Eric Lawton • 6 mesi fa • •

@EricLawton @kevinrns @gooba42 We don't need to present it that way. We can talk about jobs, families, and the fabric of small-town America.

@Urzl @Kevin Russell @Eric Lawton

in reply to Stephen Dioxide

Eric Lawton

in reply to Stephen Dioxide • 6 mesi fa • •

@Steve

I don´t understand what you mean by that. I hear that from right-wing politicians, but I assume you don´t mean the same thing as they do.

Did you have something specific in mind?

I don´t know much about the fabric of small-town America but the small towns here in rural Ontario are solid Conservative in their beliefs, not likely to support a change from the current system.

@kevinrns @gooba42 @ai6yr

@Stephen Dioxide @AI6YR Ben @Urzl @Kevin Russell

in reply to Eric Lawton

Stephen Dioxide

in reply to Eric Lawton • 6 mesi fa • •

@EricLawton @kevinrns @gooba42 What I mean first and foremost is protecting jobs. The workers traditionally depend on the boss to employ them, and if the boss dies, or retires, or goes bankrupt, those jobs are gone. However, if the workers become the owners, they no longer rely on the boss or any single individual. That's job stability, which not only supports the workers themselves, but their families and the other local businesses they patronize.

@Urzl @Kevin Russell @Eric Lawton

in reply to Stephen Dioxide

Stephen Dioxide

in reply to Stephen Dioxide • 6 mesi fa • •

@EricLawton @kevinrns @gooba42 It's true that small-town folks skew conservative around the world. So, when I talk to such folks, I play up the angles of local control, autonomy, and even self-reliance. I also talk about teaching workers business skills and giving them greater responsibility. And finally, I observe that worker co-ops have a far better track record of survival than traditional businesses.

@Urzl @Kevin Russell @Eric Lawton

in reply to Stephen Dioxide

Eric Lawton

in reply to Stephen Dioxide • 6 mesi fa • •

@Steve

When I lived in Albert's, I worked for United Grain Growers, as assistant elevator manager.

It was a farmer- owned co-operative. Next down the line was Cargill, a US agribusiness giant.

The political divide in the small town was easy to see by which company the farmers sold their grain to.

Sadly, UGG was bought out and became another agribusiness corporation.

Current tax and inheritance law makes it hard for co-ops to compete. Not just on product and price but on getting capital to renew our build infrastructure.

@kevinrns @gooba42 @ai6yr

@Stephen Dioxide @AI6YR Ben @Urzl @Kevin Russell

in reply to AI6YR Ben

StuartB

in reply to AI6YR Ben • 6 mesi fa • •

so, if they replace all their workers with AS (artificial stupidity) and keep the money they would have paid their workers...
And they convince other market sectors to do the same...

Where does the money for other businesses to buy their products come from, given that they have all replaced all their staff with AS, so no one has jobs, so no one has any money...

in reply to StuartB

Howard Cohen

in reply to StuartB • 6 mesi fa • •

@stuartb Its a new take on the tragedy of the commons. The market is like a well and people buying things is the water from the well that the companies all need. But, the companies all expect each other to have employees while they cheat the system by having very few employees. They all expect some other company to take the "burden" of having employees. I'm sure they'll figure it out and then choose to double down.

@StuartB

Unknown parent

Dataline

Unknown parent • 6 mesi fa • •

@GhostOnTheHalfShell I took to calling it "omnicide" a few years back. I think it fits.

@GhostOnTheHalfShell

Unknown parent

Joe Vinegar

Unknown parent • 6 mesi fa • •

@Dhmspector @hosford42 I agree on Dunning-Kruger but there's something more: the workers in the techbros' Silicon Valley were highly specialized and highly skilled, and were well rewarded by a booming tech industry. Their delusions of being smarter and better (just because they got to work in a highly rewarded economic niche) was supported by their living conditions compared to all other workers. If you see a fellow human treated worse than you, the easiest response is that each deserves the treatment based on their "worth" (which in turn is actually inferred from their treatment --- a circular reasoning). Tech workers having little workplace interaction (usually also socially super selective) have few opportunities for relating with fellow humans. A bunch of sociopaths by design.

@Dave Spector @Aaron

Unknown parent

Dave Spector

Unknown parent • 6 mesi fa • •

@hosford42 It goes hand in hand with the ever growing Dunning Kruger of so many in tech. The kind of self-assured arrogance that you knew more than everyone use to be mainly confined to the big consulting firms like McKinsey — then modern VC culture led techies believe they did in fact know everything (why else would they be able to make all these unicorns). It was all Dunning Kruger + Ayn Rand all the way down after that.

@Aaron

Questa voce è stata modificata (6 mesi fa)

Unknown parent

Aaron

Unknown parent • 6 mesi fa • •

@clarablackink @Dhmspector The irony of them assuming they'll be among those selected...

The whole thing is disgusting. And, having worked in that industry, I can confirm it isn't made up or an isolated case. Most people in tech have more humanity than this, but there are plenty who think they're better than everybody else just because they work in tech, to the point that they think other people's lives don't even matter.

@Dave Spector @ClaraBlackInk

in reply to AI6YR Ben

smallerdemon

in reply to AI6YR Ben • 6 mesi fa • •

LOL OK, let's see how much of your product you can sell to people without incomes or jobs.

in reply to smallerdemon

AI6YR Ben

in reply to smallerdemon • 6 mesi fa • •

@smallerdemon Literally, an entire population without jobs and a handful of billionaires. I believe that would self correct fairly rapidly.

@smallerdemon

in reply to AI6YR Ben

DeManiak 🇿🇦 🐧-More Croutons

in reply to AI6YR Ben • 6 mesi fa • •

@smallerdemon it's weird that I never see this basic question asked (nm answered).

how does the stupid system work with no income being earned by us peons?

@smallerdemon

in reply to DeManiak 🇿🇦 🐧-More Croutons

Bill

in reply to DeManiak 🇿🇦 🐧-More Croutons • 6 mesi fa • •

@kaasbaas @smallerdemon Oh it's been asked. Read Childhoods End. The answer looks like that. Always look to the sci-fi authors.

@smallerdemon @DeManiak 🇿🇦 🐧-More Croutons

⇧