Automation was also highlighted in Gartner’s recently
published top ten strategic technology trends for 2020. One trend is what
Gartner calls “hyperautomation,” the combination of multiple machine learning,
packaged software and automation tools to deliver work, referring to all the
steps of automation—discover, analyze, design, automate, measure, monitor and
reassess. Understanding the range of automation mechanisms, how they relate to
one another and how they can be combined and coordinated is a major focus for
hyperautomation.
Another 2020 trend identified by Gartner is “autonomous
things.” These are physical devices that use AI to automate functions
previously performed by humans. The most recognizable forms of autonomous
things are robots, drones, autonomous vehicles/ships and appliances. Their
automation goes beyond the automation provided by rigid programing models, and they
exploit AI to deliver advanced behaviors that interact more naturally with
their surroundings and with people. As the technology capability improves,
regulation permits and social acceptance grows, autonomous things will
increasingly be deployed in uncontrolled public spaces, predicts Gartner.
Another recent report about automation pointed out that the
promise and potential challenges of automation may take a long time to manifest
themselves. The Future of Warehouse Work from UC Berkeley Labor Center offers
an in-depth, detailed look at the range of ways in which warehouse work and the
industry as a whole might change with the adoption of new technology over the
next five to 10 years.
Conclusion? “We project that the industry likely won’t
experience dramatic job loss over the next decade, though many workers may see
the content and quality of their jobs shift as technologies are adopted for
particular tasks.”
There will be no dramatic job loss because the adoption of
automation takes time: “Absent a major shift in how warehousing activities are
valued, the dynamics that have created barriers to innovation and contributed
to the sector’s status as a laggard are likely to persist over the next five to
10 years.” This is probably true for other industries and type of jobs where
inertia will triumph over automation for some time to come.
Credit to : https://www.forbes.com/sites/gilpress/2019/10/30/2020-predictions-about-automation-and-the-future-of-work-from-forrester/?sh=2ac34d1e1318
