For all the talk of how artificial intelligence can change our daily lives, Ford CEO Jim Farley said technological advances are leaving some people behind.
The “backbone of our society” are factory employees, construction workers, and HVAC installers. Aspen Idea Festival Friday in an interview with author Walter Isaacson. And even if new technologies increased efficiency and made white-collar jobs 28% productive, the productivity levels of what he calls these “essential economics” workers have decreased, he cites a study from the Aspen Institute. Farley also pointed out millions of open roles in the work of factories, construction and automotive engineers that companies struggle to meet, he said.
“We can’t ignore that,” Farley said. “AI, battery plants – they’re all exciting, but they all need HVAC installers, everything needs electricians. They need welders. What happens if you have to protect yourself?
Part of the problem is the lack of government spending on vocational training, Farley said. Not much attention has been paid to how robotics and augmented reality can increase productivity in labor and employment, Farley said.
Farley said he hopes that robotics will replace a considerable number of jobs, but that doesn’t approach the millions of open roles that businesses struggle to meet today.
“So far, 10% of our business could be robotized. With humanoid robots, it’s probably 20%, but not 80%,” he said.
Farley said humans are doing things with factory plants that robots can’t yet, referring to the example of one worker in a German Ford plant.
Farley reiterated that businesses need to plan to help their workforce transition in this new age of artificial intelligence. However, he said that changing social thinking is also necessary.
“I think we need to go back to basics to trade schools, and we need a society that doesn’t look down on those people,” Farley said.
During the talk, Farley posted a photo of her grandfather who joined Ford as an hourly employee. “Look at the room. At one point, almost everything in your family came from this kind of job,” he said.
Farley said it was “very clear” to him that technology left many Americans behind.
“We have to admit that these new technologies are great. They make the lives of many people better and even people in essential economies better. He said, “We have to make plans for sustainment. There is no plan for that today.”
