New book reframes Luddites not as anti-tech, but as activists fighting automation's threat to workers

Luddites were textile workers in 19th century England who destroyed machines that were automating their jobs and reducing their wages.
The book "Blood in the Machine" reframes Luddites not as anti-technology but as activists fighting for workers' rights against profit-driven automation.
Parallels are drawn to today's AI automation threatening jobs like customer service, design, and translation.
Unlike smashable machines of the past, AI has no physical machinery to attack and can sustain itself on existing data.
The tragedy was not the failure to stop progress but that government sided with businesses over workers, executing Luddites instead of protecting laborers.

newyorker.com

Relevant topic timeline:

8/31/2023

Column: What Stephen King — and nearly everyone else — gets wrong about AI and the Luddites

Stephen King, a renowned author, defends generative AI by comparing it to the Luddites' resistance to industrial progress, despite the fact that the Luddites were actually protesting against the exploitation of workers through machinery, not progress itself. However, many creatives are concerned about AI's impact on their livelihoods, as it eradicates revenue streams and reduces opportunities for emerging artists, making it crucial to critically examine how the technology is being utilized.

8/31/2023

In 1909, E.M. Forster foresaw the real threat from AI - The Boston Globe

The article discusses the potential dangers of AI, drawing on E.M. Forster's 1909 novella "The Machine Stops," which warns that technology can lead to a society that is lethargic, isolated, and devoid of purpose, rather than a machine uprising like often portrayed in Hollywood.

9/1/2023

What the Luddites Can Teach Us about AI

The Luddites were not technophobes but rather fought against the specific ways in which technology was used to exploit and harm them, a parallel to the modern backlash against Big Tech and AI that is disrupting the labor market.

9/26/2023

As AI Threatens Jobs, the Luddites' Resistance Holds New Relevance

Brian Merchant argues that understanding the true history of the Luddites is important for workers today who are grappling with the rise of AI and automation, as the Luddites were not against machinery but opposed the exploitation of workers and the erosion of their livelihoods by factory owners using new technology to drive down wages and worsen conditions.

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Posted 9/26/2023, 6:36:22 PM

New book reframes Luddites not as anti-tech, but as activists fighting automation's threat to workers

Luddites were textile workers in 19th century England who destroyed machines that were automating their jobs and reducing their wages.
The book "Blood in the Machine" reframes Luddites not as anti-technology but as activists fighting for workers' rights against profit-driven automation.
Parallels are drawn to today's AI automation threatening jobs like customer service, design, and translation.
Unlike smashable machines of the past, AI has no physical machinery to attack and can sustain itself on existing data.
The tragedy was not the failure to stop progress but that government sided with businesses over workers, executing Luddites instead of protecting laborers.

newyorker.com

Relevant topic timeline:

8/31/2023

Column: What Stephen King — and nearly everyone else — gets wrong about AI and the Luddites

8/31/2023

In 1909, E.M. Forster foresaw the real threat from AI - The Boston Globe

9/1/2023

What the Luddites Can Teach Us about AI

9/26/2023

As AI Threatens Jobs, the Luddites' Resistance Holds New Relevance