Just a thought

We may not be on the verge of a robot apocalypse just yet but the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) and the robotic boom have been a long time coming. As the world’s mechanical overhaul is increasingly accepted it is vital to consider what this means for the UK’s labour force the redistribution of wealth and tax laws.

Automation is not a new phenomenon by any stretch. In the late 16th century a British inventor William Lee founded the stocking frame which revolutionised the clothing industry. Workers could use Lee’s machine to increase their productivity from 100 stitches a minute by hand to 1 000 on average.

Similarly the printing press – invented in the mid-1400s – modernised each society it touched yet was ultimately made redundant by more efficient printing machines.

This is a normal process aligned with human evolution...