Since ChatGPT took the world by surprise last autumn, people have been in a frenzy over the effects that artificial intelligence and other new automated technologies will have on America’s work sector. The impression that robots are snatching our jobs was reinforced by viral videos of brand-new, “fully automated” McDonald’s and Taco Bell locations.
The reflexive reaction to these movies is that even while AI and other forms of automation have improved, it doesn’t always follow that they will result in the end of jobs. The way we work and the types of jobs that are available are only changing as a result of the new technology. Automation technology has introduced a fleet of clandestine employees who work behind screens, gadgets, and happy robot faces. Robots and chatbots are not meant to take the place of humans, but rather to keep them out of sight and out of mind. Additionally, despite mounting evidence that customer and employee separation is detrimental to individuals, it might be beneficial to organisations.
People often use instances of slick robots and beautiful screens performing monotonous tasks when predicting that AI will replace our occupations. In the McDonald’s advertisement, self-ordering kiosks, a machine that delivers food at the drive-thru, and a conspicuous lack of human employees working the order counter are all shown. Taco Bell has a number of automated drive-through lines. In addition to the fast-food industry, impressive-looking robots are already working in coffee shops, delivering meals, and cleaning floors. On the AI side, programmes like ChatGPT have been used to write legitimate articles and pass college exams. BuzzFeed recently announced that it would use AI to help in content creation for its website.
However, these stories and movies frequently omit crucial information, which fuels viewers’ worries. The future McDonald’s, an experimental concept store south of Fort Worth, Texas, virtually cuts off interaction between its staff and customers in order to improve service effectiveness and accuracy. However, that doesn’t mean that nobody is inside the store. If you closely examine the footage, you can see a worker in the back behind a glass screen.
Behind the scenes person
In the fear mongering about a robot takeover, people occasionally fail to notice the extent to which robots still need humans to function. Think about customer service: For years, companies have tried to cut costs by replacing human phone calls with automated chat-based customer service bots. In difficult situations, many of these text-based solutions still rely on human backups, and they aim to make customers feel as though they are chatting to actual people rather than taking the place of customer service personnel.
