Artificial intelligence has been in the spotlight for several years, and there are continuing concerns that this technology could lead to job losses in the future. AI has already eliminated much of the job market for aspiring programmers, and there are concerns that it will soon enter even more employment fields. Naturally, the public is sensitive to such scenarios, which is why videos like the one CyberNews posted on YouTube garner so much attention. Although unconfirmed, many wonder if this is an indication that humans could train AI through cameras and replace it in the workplace in the coming years.
As seen in the video above, the person behind the camera records workers doing seemingly textile-related jobs in India. What’s really eye-catching is the fact that they wear headsets with cameras attached to the front, acting as a second set of eyes while they work. While this could be a strict control tool used to ensure employees are able to perform their jobs during their shift, many of the comments on the video are concerned that this is an example of footage collection for an AI system. In theory, the collected video could train an AI in the form of a robot to do the work of the person currently wearing the headset.
As mentioned above, it’s unclear if this is exactly what this viral video depicts. Unfortunately, this type of AI training is becoming more and more common these days, so this is far from a far-fetched theory.
Training AI using working footage is not unheard of
It is well understood that vast amounts of data are essential for AI to function as intended. This technology technically does not create so much as an approximation of ideas, images, and other data into a synthetic form. This means that when using AI in factories and other manual labor environments, in addition to requiring a physical robot form to perform the task, it also requires an understanding of how that job is performed. Unsurprisingly, companies are already considering this combination and are looking to completely change the way labor and humans interact with it.
Jobs platform Instawork, for example, sees a future in which the human workforce is moved to new fields. While AI robots perform the labor themselves over a long period of time, human workers wear cameras and record themselves doing the work as a sample. Therefore, humans become trainers and robots act as workers. While it can pay quite well, according to MIT Technology Review, the work can be very tedious, repetitive, and unsatisfying, according to those who have already tried it through AI company Micro1. Still, there is public concern that this data collection could lead to complete job losses rather than replacements, without any safety net for already overworked and underpaid workers, according to CNN.
As it stands, robotics and AI will continue to evolve and even grow together. Humanoid robots, such as those made in China, can already do a lot, and with the wealth of labor information provided by workers equipped with cameras, they will eventually be able to do even more. What that means for the human workforce remains to be seen.
