Artificial intelligence is being woven into nearly everything. Some of it is highly visible. Much of it is working silently beneath the surface. And, its impact is very hard to overstate.
AI tools are supercharging productivity for businesses and workers. Plain and simple, companies are finding tons of ways to do far more with fewer people. Things that once took hours can now be done in minutes. Job functions in data analysis, customer service and administrative work is increasingly being automated. Once you experience AI’s power, you cannot imagine ever putting the genie back in the bottle.
Investors clearly see it. It’s one of the biggest reasons the stock market continues to sit near all-time highs, despite a long list of uncertainties.
We all see our global alliances increasingly strained. Wars have broken out that threaten our energy sources. China’s growing threat toward Taiwan is simmering in the background. Political tensions are high as we head into yet another election cycle. Inflation pressures have jumped once again and the Fed has totally reversed course as it now openly contemplates hiking, not cutting, interest rates.
Normally, this is a backdrop that would create market stress, not market highs. Yet, stocks continue rising because investors believe in AI’s game-changing impact.
But, we’re beginning to see some early signs of a backlash. College graduates are openly showing anxiety about the effect of AI on their job prospects and overall futures. Politicians are just starting to talk about the need to protect workers. Even the pope has chimed in. The backlash is only going to grow louder from here. Their concern about AI is totally understandable.
AI is currently disrupting traditional, knowledge-based jobs. Just look at the headlines about layoffs from tech companies. It’s underway. But the next wave is just around the corner. While it may take a few years, AI-embedded robotics are quickly coming after many physical jobs, too.
So, while AI may – for a while, at least – continue driving productivity gains, higher profits and record stock prices, it will absolutely leave us with serious social questions to answer.
In what way will those who benefit most from AI be required to share with those who have been replaced by it? Will we need some level of universal income? How much? And, what role does meaningful work play in our lives as humans?
From my vantage point as a wealth manager, things are certainly complicated today. The opportunities AI is creating are very, very real. But so are the risks. Beneath all of the justifiable excitement surrounding AI today, there is simply no doubt that it’s a sharp sword that can and will cut both ways. The trick, I suppose, is knowing when the blade starts to swing back the other way.
