Robots will soon make bankers and many more jobs totally redundant

[jimmy olsen]

CdM has long waited for this day

http://news.nationalpost.com/2014/09/01/robots-will-soon-make-bankers-and-many-more-job-now-done-by-humans-totally-redundant-expert-says/

Robots will soon make bankers — and many more jobs now done by humans — totally redundant, expert says
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Rebecca Burn-Callander, The Telegraph | September 1, 2014 | Last

Robots will be running the City within 10 years, rendering investment bankers, analysts and even quants redundant, it has been claimed.

Artificial intelligence is about to outpace human ability, according to Dave Coplin, a senior Microsoft executive. Computers will not only be able to undertake complex mathematical equations but draw logical, nuanced conclusions, reducing the need for human interference, he said.

This will render certain professions redundant, while other "human only" skills will become increasingly valuable.

"I believe in Moravec's Paradox," Mr. Coplin, Microsoft's UK-based chief envisioning officer, told The Telegraph, referring to the Eighties hypothesis discovered by artificial intelligence and robotics researchers. "This states that what we think is easy, robots find really hard, and what we think it really hard, robots find easy," he said. "Complex maths equations are hard for humans but take nanoseconds for a computer, but moving around and picking things up is easy for us, while being almost impossible for a robot."

Meanwhile, he said, professions currently viewed as commodities will become specialist human skills. "It would be hard to train a robot to be a nurse, or even a chef, but the City could be run by algorithms," he said. "People who use their hands will have jobs for life."

Algorithms are already commonplace on City trading floors, and are used in many industries, from online retail to internet dating. High-frequency trading, governed by algorithms, is already one of the most profitable trading classes. But, according to Mr. Coplin, in 10 years people will no longer be required to manage these algorithms. Decisions will be taken directly by the artificial intelligence.

"Everyone thinks of Terminator and Skynet [the computer that becomes self-aware and attempts to destroy mankind in James Cameron's 1984 film] when I start talking about this, but technology affords us a tremendous opportunity to play to our strengths as humans, and stand on the shoulders of robotic giants," said Mr. Coplin.

Microsoft has tasked Mr. Coplin with exploring the new trends that will shape the world of work in the coming years.

"I am hunting for the game-changers of the next 10 years," he said.

Mr. Coplin believes that the rise of big data and innovations in the field of "ambient intelligence" – smart technology that responds to the presence of people – are going to bring about radical changes in the workplace.

"I call my mobile a smartphone but even though it has information about where I am and who I speak to, it doesn't do anything with that information. It doesn't deliver a service."

In the future, ambient intelligence will allow devices to anticipate your needs and respond in real time. Your phone will send automated email responses based on keywords and contributing factors such as location, time of day, and calendar entries. "Business processes will be increasingly automated, freeing up humans to do more useful things," Mr. Coplin said.

Big data is not a new concept but technologists are increasingly interested in finding new ways that these mountains of data can be read and interpreted.

Microsoft is an active participant in this field of research. It recently trialled a new feature for Skype, its voice over IP service, which allows users to select a language and translates their speech in real-time.

Social media is also changing the way organisations will communicate in the future, according to Mr. Coplin, who has a vision of a transparent, digital corporate infrastructure, where emails, documents and spreadsheets are all accessible to and searchable by anyone in that organisation. "Knowledge will flow freely, you will be able to see information even if you're not part of the conversation. It won't be locked up in teams of inboxes any more."

Many of the new workplace trends may seem alien today but, according to Mr. Coplin, "This new technology will bring about cultural change."

The Daily Telegraph

[Ideologue]

[JR]This will open up brave new frontiers in job-having and productivity-producing, from the dumbest possible human worker, whose quality of life will be improved, to the loftiest Of Counsel or whatever I am, whose quality of life will surely stay exactly the same as it is today: perfect in every way.[/JR]

[Syt]

Fun fact: Timmay has been replaced months ago by an automatic news aggregator.

[Valmy]

This sort of change heralds a major shift in our way of life.  Hunter Gatherers would just sort of hang out once they got all the food they need, if things are going well that takes them a few hours at most.  It was only with agriculture that we became laborers who would toil from dawn til dusk and set up all these institutions to manage human labor.  But if we do not need massive amounts of human labor, how will out institutions change to manage the shift?  What will all these people be doing?

[The Brain]

Jews will be redundant? How ironic.

[CountDeMoney]

Fun fact: Timmay has been replaced months ago by an automatic news aggregator.

[Legbiter]

Fun fact: Timmay has been replaced months ago by an automatic news aggregator.

Is it true CdM has Timmy's brain in a jar at home? 

[Neil]

This sort of change heralds a major shift in our way of life.  Hunter Gatherers would just sort of hang out once they got all the food they need, if things are going well that takes them a few hours at most.  It was only with agriculture that we became laborers who would toil from dawn til dusk and set up all these institutions to manage human labor.  But if we do not need massive amounts of human labor, how will out institutions change to manage the shift?  What will all these people be doing?

Why would institutions change?  Isn't the point of having institutions to avoid change?

The result will be higher unemployment, higher lottery sales and more people speaking out against lazy welfare bums.

[Malthus]

Fun fact: Timmay has been replaced months ago by an automatic news aggregator.

Is it true CdM has Timmy's brain in a jar at home? 

I find that hard to believe.

If he had Timmy's brain, would he really keep it? 

[derspiess]

And I thought ATMs were supposed to totally replace bank tellers by the 90s.

[Caliga]

And I thought ATMs were supposed to totally replace bank tellers by the 90s.

This will not happen 'soon' unless by soon you mean in 50 years or more.

[garbon]

[JR]This will open up brave new frontiers in job-having and productivity-producing, from the dumbest possible human worker, whose quality of life will be improved, to the loftiest Of Counsel or whatever I am, whose quality of life will surely stay exactly the same as it is today: perfect in every way.[/JR]

That doesn't sound like what Joan would say.

[alfred russel]

This sort of change heralds a major shift in our way of life.  Hunter Gatherers would just sort of hang out once they got all the food they need, if things are going well that takes them a few hours at most.  It was only with agriculture that we became laborers who would toil from dawn til dusk and set up all these institutions to manage human labor.  But if we do not need massive amounts of human labor, how will out institutions change to manage the shift?  What will all these people be doing?

We learned part of the answer this week. People will be relentlessly trying to hack pictures of naked celebrities. Apple will need to upgrade its security.

[Valmy]

And I thought ATMs were supposed to totally replace bank tellers by the 90s.

My bank already did this.  No tellers.

This will not happen 'soon' unless by soon you mean in 50 years or more.

'Soon' in this case was four years ago.  Seems to be working fine.

[Ideologue]

[JR]This will open up brave new frontiers in job-having and productivity-producing, from the dumbest possible human worker, whose quality of life will be improved, to the loftiest Of Counsel or whatever I am, whose quality of life will surely stay exactly the same as it is today: perfect in every way.[/JR]

That doesn't sound like what Joan would say.

[JR]History has shown that all economic shifts in the modern era ultimately result in not just greater wealth, but wealth more broadly shared, resulting in a higher standard of living.  What makes this shift different, except for the fact that an economy where everyone is an hipster artisan or blog author is almost certainly not viable?[/JR]