Been thinking about this from an infrastructure reliability angle.
When we automated SCADA systems at utilities, we didn’t eliminate jobs overnight – we shifted them. Took 5-10 years. People retrained, retired, or moved sideways.
AI agents are different. They scale instantly. One deployment can absorb work that took 50 people. Here’s the question nobody’s funding: if an AI handles claims processing for an insurance company – replacing 20 adjusters – who contributes to social security? Unemployment insurance? Healthcare pools?
There are a few proposals floating around. Robot tax (flat levy per AI deployment). Automation VAT (percentage of productivity gains). Imputed wages (the AI “earns” an equivalent salary and gets taxed accordingly).
My take: we’re not ready for entities that generate economic value without consuming services. Our entire social contract assumes workers → taxes → safety net.
What’s your read? Is this a real funding gap, or does increased productivity naturally generate enough tax revenue elsewhere?
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