"The state and the economy are advancing by storm — but the workers are almost not benefitting from this progress and are left behind. It is almost a catastrophe."

Futurist predicts "the end of the world as we know it"

Hollowing Out

Future studies researcher Roey Tzezana says workplace automation will mean the destruction of the middle class and the "end of the world as we know it."

Futurist Predicts “The End of the World as We Know It”

"This figure is the end of the world for the average people."

"[The Venezuelans] were aware that, on one level, it's exploitation and they have to do it because everything else failed them."

Self-driving car companies depend on cheap labor from Venezuela

AI Exploitation

Self-driving car companies are benefitting from cheap Venezuelan labor as they compile mountains of annotated training data for their AI.

Self-Driving Car Companies Depend on Cheap Labor From Venezuela

People in Venezuela are annotating the endless training data for vehicles' AI.

"...the teacher said if I didn't work overtime, I could not intern at Foxconn and that would affect my graduation and scholarship applications at the school."

Foxconn used child labor to manufacture Amazon Alexa gadgets

Anything For Margins

An investigation reveals that schoolchildren in China are working illegal hours to manufacture Amazon Echo products as part of a school internship.

Foxconn Used Child Labor to Manufacture Amazon Alexa Gadgets

Chinese schoolchildren are working overnight shifts for Foxconn.

"Amazon’s system tracks the rates of each individual associate’s productivity."

Amazon used an AI to automatically fire low-productivity workers

AI Boss

Amazon's AI automatically tracked and fired hundreds of fulfillment center employees for failing to meet productivity quotas.

Amazon Used An AI to Automatically Fire Low-Productivity Workers

It's a grim glimpse of a future in which AI is your boss — and you're disposable.

If your company's founder exclaims, "Hey, we could actually use prison labor," maybe steer clear.

A Finnish startup is using prison labor to train AI

Cheap As Free

A Finnish startup called Vainu relies on prison labor to train its AI algorithms, arguing that labeling training data is giving inmates valuable skills.

A Finnish Startup Is Using Prison Labor to Train AI

"Hey, we could actually use prison labor."

The self-proclaimed ethical tech giant has more labor issues to sort out.

Apple runs a "black site" that a worker called "dehumanizing and terrifying"

Out of Sight

Anonymous contractors at Apple's so-called "black site," a low-key office for Apple Maps development, described grim working conditions.

Apple Runs A “Black Site” That a Worker Called “Dehumanizing”

“It was made pretty plain to us that we were at-will employees and they would fire us at any time,”

The world is ready for the next gear of capitalism.

Op-Ed: It's time to shift our society to robotic labor and a basic income

Future Society

By fundamentally severing human labor and income, society can reach fourth gear capitalism, where all members of the economy will benefit.

/ / labor