China says robots and AI won’t lead to “significant” loss of jobs

 

A government report suggests a robot tax to help disadvantaged workers

Hotel service robots on display at CES in Shanghai in June 2019. (Picture: Bloomberg)

There has long been a debate on whether robots will end up putting a large part of the population out of work. Now China says that AI and automation will indeed replace some jobs, but it won’t be as damaging as feared.

That’s according to a report published this week by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, a national think tank. It says that during China’s 14th Five-Year Plan, which starts in 2021, the rise of robots will not lead to “significant” job destruction.

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