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A Robot Served Me Lunch

Universal Basic Income can't come soon enough.

By Chris CarabottPublished 2 years ago 3 min read
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I have been frequenting my local Boston Pizza for years. For those not familiar with Boston Pizza, it's a chain restaurant in Canada that serves a wide array of pub food, pasta, and plenty of beer options.

I don't think Boston has ever been known for its pizza, but the chain is successful, so I guess the name works.

Over the years I had also become familiar with some of the staff who always greeted me with a warm welcome when I walked through the door and seemed to know just what I wanted to order, sometimes even before I did.

The food is good, but that familiarity and friendliness is a big reason why I would go back.

Throughout the pandemic it was obvious a change was happening. There were plenty of staffing changes, as would be expected, and overtime it just seemed like there were less employees overall. That's understandable. There is a push for better wages, benefits, and other necessities for employees these past few years. As much as it saddened me to see some familiar faces go, it's understandable that they would want to take charge and make a better life for themselves.

By Andy Kelly on Unsplash

This past weekend a friend and I were surprised when a robot came out carrying our food orders on its back. It was followed by an employee who handed off our dishes to us. There were only two of us, I am sure the server could have brought out the food themselves, but for some reason, the robot was chosen for this task. It attempted some human pleasantries and even had a smile on its screen. Maybe the server had a bad back and the robot was the best option for the job. It performed its task admirably.

It's strange. As a child, I was always excited for a future filled with flying cars, jet packs, and robots living among us. While two out of three have yet to pan out, I am starting to see robots more frequently. My initial reaction to seeing an automaton carrying out a job that would once be handled by a human is usually one of child-like excitement. It's a freaking robot. Sure, it doesn't have arms and legs, but it's out there and appears to function amongst humans without much issue.

That child-like excitement is quickly crushed by thoughts of modern socio-economic realities.

By Dominik Scythe on Unsplash

Jobs are going to start disappearing and fast. People don't even want to work these jobs, at least for the pay they are being offered. I've been seeing short-staffed service positions everywhere, and I'm sure I am not alone. You can bet there are AI and machine-related solutions in the works to fill these positions.

I don't think we can stop the machines. I don't know if I want to stop the machines. Non-sentient robots carrying out all these menial tasks would sure free up a lot of time for people to do more of what they want to do. Last week I wrote about 'Writing AI' and my findings both excited and scared me. There are some jobs that I would just rather see AI and machines handle. It seems like an opportunity for humanity to thrive.

The free time afforded to us by the machine uprising could be used to better educate ourselves on topics we are truly interested in instead of ones we feel like we need to take because they will make us most desirable for employment. We could focus on improving our environment, eating healthier, spending more time outdoors and exercising.

The future could be incredible.

Well, it would be, if we weren't so woefully unprepared for it. Universal basic income still seems like a pipedream. We're still caged in a socio-economic environment that is more focused on the accumulation of wealth instead of the betterment of society. Politicians seem nowhere near equipped with the necessary understanding of the evolution that stands before us.

Science fiction loves to depict us at war with machines. The reality is that we are at war with ourselves, and the machines are just here to help.

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About the Creator

Chris Carabott

I’m a Toronto, Ontario native with over 13 years of freelance writing experience in the fields of television, video games, and technology. I have written hundreds of reviews and articles for websites like IGN, Vocal, and Medium.

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