The Industrial Revolution Again: Resources Flow to the People Who Understand
AI will not end work, just as the Industrial Revolution did not. Resources flow to people who know a domain and the tools. Here is the question to ask instead.
For the past few years, many people asked me, “Will AI put engineers out of work?” I was afraid of that too.
Later, I found that I was asking the wrong question.
The old question and the new question
The Industrial Revolution did not end work. After machines came, resources flowed to the people who knew how to use them. The people who did not learn the machines were the ones left behind.
I think AI is the same. People who know a domain and also know the tools will get more resources. You cannot stop this. But the direction works for you if you stand on the side of the people who understand.
Why the question must change
The old question only brings anxiety. You keep thinking about where to go after you lose your job, but you have no next step.
The new question makes you act. Doing the same work, how do I get more? You start to look at what you do each day, which tasks AI can take, and where the saved time goes.
That is what happened to me. When I started asking the new question, I found a long list of important work that waited years for me to have time. The Golden Age of Quadrant Two is about that work.
Not “where do I go after I lose my job,” but “doing the same work, how do I get more.”
Related: next, read The Golden Age of Quadrant Two, or go back to the series overview: Will AI Take My Job?