By Anya Geiling 

With technology advancing by the hour, it is hard to picture our upcoming years as a species. By 2022, 60% of all U.S. companies expect to be using AI or advanced automation to support efficiency in operations, staffing, budgeting or performance (Genesys). If the majority of work is taken over by a computer, what jobs will you and I have in the future?  

To begin, apart from realizing that technology will essentially take over the world, let’s start with the process before humans try to make ends meet. College. College is more important now than ever to even apply for a job. Nowadays, most people are actually overqualified for their job due to the shortage of job openings. Therefore, let’s now talk about even earning a college degree. 

College tuition this day and age is unbelievable. Ivy leagues range from $50-$60,000 a year, and regular public universities are anywhere from $21,000 in-state to $30,000 out of state. These costs put students in debt, and make them rely on financial aid. There are no better options for the middle class, in which there are few scholarships that can provide help to those families. With larger pools of applicants each year due to a boom in population around the world, going to one’s dream college seems to be becoming obsolete.  

But let’s just say you do go to college. What happens next? You apply to multiple corporations, schools, hospitals, etc. Resumes get tossed around and you anxiously await the decision that can change your life forever. Accordingly, 3,000 other people applied to the same position you wanted and had the exact same credentials. This is what is hurting our society today; there are too many people and not enough jobs to go around. 

Our species is creating its own downfall– we create AI to take away more jobs from people which then leads to an increase in crime. Increased crime rate equals drug use, and drug use equals the downfall of that town. Fights, riots, and corrupted rulers arise from those areas, resulting in the destruction of the whole nation. 

Education is necessary for any species to survive, from animals to creatures of the sea. Without utilizing our great gift of cognitive learning, we wouldn’t be where we are today. But now, we are using that tool meant for survival to help the rich get richer. This is because using AI means less money spent by the owner, in which only 5 staff will be hired instead of 50. Where do those 45 other people work? What will they do to support their families?

I hope this topic is looked upon more as we realize we are in for a ride when it comes to advancement in technology. Just think about what you will do in the future and how you can fulfill that goal, because there are millions of others thinking about that same exact thing.