Depending on the use case, generative AI may help eliminate or reduce the need for human editing, speeding product development and increasing employee productivity, as well as creating more tailored customer experiences.
Post scarcity economy is a science fiction trope where goods and services are free or nearly so, driven by abundance of basic resources and cutting edge automation technologies.
What is the post scarcity economy?
Post scarcity refers to an economic state in which basic necessities such as food, water, shelter and what each person needs are readily accessible at relatively cheap or even free prices for all individuals living on Earth. This differs greatly from current capitalist economies where products tend to be seen as luxury items due to high material and labour costs associated with production processes.
This hypothetical economy would result from technological advancement that allows us to replicate any object we can design – like Star Trek replicators or RepRap – at affordable costs; coupled with ample fundamental resources (matter, energy and intelligence). Many science fiction tales depict this future economy with ownership becoming less relevant over time; items may simply remain as keepsakes or become essential elements of an individual’s identity versus being kept for sentimental or financial considerations; eventually monetary systems would probably cease existing as well.
Some have argued that we’ve already reached post scarcity, with many of our needs now met through technology and automation. For instance, house construction projects now take hours instead of days compared with traditional projects. Unfortunately though, these homes don’t meet everyone’s needs in society such as elderly citizens, disabled individuals, homeless and vulnerable groups like these; furthermore there remains much work to do if we wish to address issues such as climate change and global inequality.
Generative AI is seen as one of the keys to post scarcity society. Not only can it provide access to more affordable luxury goods, it can also solve social issues and generate new opportunities.
Key to realizing our future vision of material production lies in eliminating its constraints – that means no longer needing to extract, mine and transport raw materials for manufacturing plants; we will instead be able to produce what we need quickly with a combination of generative AI and 3D printing technologies as well as fully automation with AI.
Reaching true post-scarcity may require us to adapt our perception of value, while at the same time ending our need for labor. Furthermore, this could involve altering environmental values – perhaps by recreating space exploration as a meaningful human pursuit, making colonisation of distant corners of space an essential human pursuit or populating remote areas of Earth.
How does generative AI impact the intellectual work?
Generic AI differs from existing AI technologies in that it actually generates new content or products by itself, freeing human workers for more creative, value-adding work. Applications range from video game development to medical research: video game developers have used it to generate the “barks” (short phrases or sounds made by virtual characters and environments), while doctors use it to model protein sequences and identify drug compounds likely to treat certain ailments.
Generative AI can also assist companies in solving complex problems with limited resources, such as recognizing patterns in data or designing an airplane wing, car engine or power plant in innovative ways. Furthermore, this technology may also reduce carbon emissions, improve supply chain efficiencies and boost productivity within companies.
As with any technological advance, generative AI presents its own set of difficulties. Chief among these is that it may make knowledge work less essential and be a threat to jobs that require creativity, interpersonal skills or high levels of complexity. While history shows us that significant technological changes often create more jobs than they reduce employment numbers can only alleviate so much anxiety from workers whose roles change significantly.
Generative AI models must also be trained on vast quantities of data, which requires both time and money for training. OpenAI’s GPT-3 required 45 Terabytes (or one quarter of the Library of Congress) of text to train. That amount represents resources most start-ups cannot afford to devote.
Finally, generative AI’s ability to learn from and imitate humans has the potential to cause serious harm if unregulated. For example, it could be used to hurt feelings or spread falsehoods, leading to misunderstands and possibly inciting violence and wars. While generative AI holds enormous promise, the question remains how it can safely and responsibly be integrated into business processes while maintaining integrity, safety and ethical standards.
What are the challenges?
The concept of post scarcity economies can be difficult to grasp as it challenges many of our everyday assumptions. With capitalism’s inherent zero-sum nature and belief that financial resources should only be valued based on what products and services they can purchase, it is difficult to imagine an economic system without competition for scarce goods and services. Laissez-faire Capitalism would not require entities to produce them while natural capitalistic markets would quickly remove those businesses who did so through reduced product costs; both scenarios would eventually cause their demise as businesses cease operating due to price reduction of products (natural capitalism will eventually cause their closure).
But in many ways we are already well on our way towards a post scarcity economy. Rapid innovations in 3D printing and the Internet of Things are creating conditions for an end of scarcity – which in turn may signal its demise.
It is equally essential to recognize that post scarcity is not only about products. People care deeply about more than being able to purchase goods; such as love, health, wellness, family, friends, life style, satisfaction, ecological sustainability, etc. Thus the death of scarcity could provide an opportunity to develop an economic model which prioritizes these values over just products alone.
Universal Basic Income is one way of providing for this goal; other approaches may also work. Many science fiction writers have imagined post-scarcity societies such as those depicted by Neal Stephenson in The Diamond Age or even Star Trek (though canon sources reveal that their replicators cannot duplicate some items – most notably starships).
One challenge of transitioning to a post-scarcity economy will be maintaining property rights over physical land. Yet we can still protect intellectual property; the key lies in combatting private exclusionary conduct that hinders cost-cutting innovation, and advocating policies designed to make it easier for individuals to create and produce digital content themselves.
What are the opportunities?
Human labor will no longer be needed to meet basic needs such as food and shelter, freeing humans up for more creative endeavors such as education, art and game-based competition such as sports or video gaming. Many social problems that currently plague humanity such as crime, war and terrorism will also be resolved through collective cooperation rather than competition; marking the first time ever when mankind truly united towards one goal and purpose.
Businesses also have several opportunities in the post scarcity economy to make a profit, including creating products and services that exploit generative AI’s unique abilities – for instance by taking advantage of AR and VR technologies as well as robotics – while developing innovative business models to take full advantage of increased generative AI efficiency.
Alternative economies could provide another opportunity, by switching from a market economy to one based on gifts, exchange or people values. To accomplish this goal, money could only be used for exchanging energy resources or non-material things such as status or reputation (Whuffie is one example). Furthermore, societies could introduce digital tokens representing ownership rights as another currency option.
One challenge facing societies today is avoiding the Jevons Paradox, which refers to how efficiency gains can lead to increased consumption by making goods cheaper for individuals, increasing consumption in turn and thus further depleting fossil fuel reserves. To prevent this paradox from taking hold, societies should carefully consider unintended consequences associated with efficiency improvements before undertaking them.
At the same time, however, it must be remembered that while post scarcity economies may be possible in theory, their implementation will take time. A gradual process will need to take place that shifts how we think about wealth, property and work – for instance it would not be realistic for everyone to own a million private jets in such an economy.
