Labor and Automation // Studio Day

Today

• Labor and Automation Discussion
• Final Project Studio

For Next Time

• Work on your Final Project
  • Milestone 2 is due Monday December 8th at 7PM
  • The Final Project will be due Tuesday December 16th at 7PM
• Work on your Broader Impacts Phase 3, due on Friday December 12th at 7PM
• Consider whether there is feedback you’d like to share about the class

The Automated Labor Landscape

Automated labor refers to the process of replacing manually completed actions with technology. While it has colloquially often referred to using machinery to replace physical labor, it is increasingly used to refer to the automation of less physically-intensive tasks across sectors like marketing, customer support, and data analytics.

We’re going to be focused on the slice of the automated labor landscape that specifically involves robots or robotic systems for this class. We’ll be looking at both robotic technologies used in various sectors, and economic and cultural interpretation and commentary on a transition in some markets towards robotic technology.

To get started, we’ll briefly interrogate our pre-conceptions about automated labor. These slides will guide our initial discussion.

The Economics of Automation

With our pre-conceived notions identified, we’re going to do a brief investigation on the economics of robotic automation, having a critical look at how consulting firms (e.g., McKinsey and Company) analyze and frame markets with respect to automation. With the folks around you, please pick one of the following articles to review (and feel free to look up others!):

• Agriculture: Trends driving automation on the farm
• Manufacturing: Automation and the talent challenge in American manufacturing
• An Industry Overview in Broad Strokes: Unlocking the industrial potential of robotics and automation
• Logistics: Getting warehouse automation right
• Transportation: Autonomous driving’s future: Convenient and connected

With your group, develop a ~5 minute summary and interpretation of your article to share. Attend to the following:

1. What is the labor being automated, and how does the automation work?
2. What motivates the use of automation in this industry?
3. What trends have occurred in the labor force and economics of this industry?
4. What critiques do you have on the reporting?
5. What are your follow-up questions?

We will report-out to one another, then gather back as a group to reflect on: when is automating a market justified?