The Desirability of Automizing Labor: An Overview

Abstract

ABSTRACT The debate about the impact and desirability of automizing labor is one that emerges alongside every major technological development. In recent years, attention for the potential ethical and social implications of automizing labor increased once again, in response to the successes and promises of artificial intelligence (AI) and other modern technologies. The aim of this article is, first and foremost, to introduce the reader to recent work on the desirability of automizing labor. The article distinguishes two philosophical debates about replacing human jobs with AI systems or robots. The first debate has to do with questions of distributive justice, in light of the prospect of structural technological unemployment. The second debate has to do with questions about the relation between a job and a meaningful life. In addition to sketching these debates, the article highlights environmental concerns regarding automation as a possible future direction for research on the future of work.