The prospect of artificial intelligence [AI] has been advancing every day at the moment. This revolution is expected to open several doors while shutting a few avenues. Several users across the globe believed that AI could replace a plethora of jobs. However, a Nobel Prize-winning economist noted how ChatGPT or AI could increase the chances of a four-day week. Christopher Pissarides, a professor at the London School of Economics believed that AI could bring about more productivity. At a recent conference, he said,
“I’m very optimistic that we could increase productivity. We could increase our well-being generally from work and we could take off more leisure. We could move to a four-day week easily.”
Time and again, several have been calling out the perils of AI. But Pissarides suggested that if it is used properly it could certainly make a “big difference” to productivity. He pointed out that AI tech like ChatGPT, could eliminate “boring” things at work. He added,
“They could take away lots of boring things that we do at work … and then leave only the interesting stuff to human beings.”
He further highlighted how adopting AI into our daily lives might be hard and would require adjusting. The professor mentioned that adjustment is nothing but “upskilling.”
But will governments and tech leaders make way for AI development?
Last week, several industry leaders were seen calling for a pause on the development of AI tech like ChatGPT. More recently, U.S. President Joe Biden urged companies to ensure their products are safe before releasing them to the general public.
The president claimed that social media has already shown the detrimental effects that advanced technologies can have in the lack of suitable safeguards. He further added,
“Absent safeguards, we see the impact on the mental health and self-images and feelings and hopelessness, especially among young people.”
While every technology has its own set of pros and cons, focusing and building on the pros could make room for growth.