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Artificial intelligence promises the future of unprecedented productivity and wealth, but for Senator Bernie Sanders, the important question is not whether the technology will change the world, but who will benefit from this change. As a lifetime champion for workers’ rights, the rapid progress of Sanders AI is not just as a technical revolution, but also as the next big battlefield of corporate greed and discrimination.
In a conversation to Vermont Senator Gizmodo, who revealed that he had just spoke to one of the world’s top AI experts, feared that the technology would be used to suppress wages, break unions and enrich the billionaire class. He also shared his concerns about AI’s impact on our collective mental health and discussed the “Dumsod scene”, which has some of the top mind in the industry that humanity can lose control of its own creation.
The conversation has been edited for clarity and is formatted as questionnaire. All quotes are Verbatim and Unoldred.
Gizmodo:: Senator, you have long fought for labor dignity. In an economy growing economy by AI, do you believe that meaningful work should be a new definition?
Sen Sanders: Okay, that’s a very good question, and I don’t know that I can give you an intelligent answer to it right now, but that’s what I will say. I think what is being lost in the discussion with AI is what we have seen in the last 3 years: a huge increase in labor productivity. Almost all the benefits of productivity have gone to the corporation and that technology developed companies. In fact, workers are earning less in wages in real inflation-accounts today and I am very afraid that almost all the new benefits of labor productivity will go to the top people at the cost of the working people. It’s something that makes me very worry.
So, the first point will be created: technology and AI are not good or bad. It depends on how it is used and it depends on who it benefits from. If we do not change political dynamics, the benefits are going to collect the top people at the expense of the working people. To me this is the most important thing. I want the workers to benefit from this new technology, not just the top people at the top.
ICally, for forever, in human existence – in human existence – people had to fight for food, to farm, to increase food, to just survive. And AI is about to change everything, and we want to make sure it creates a better, rich future for ordinary people, not just at the top.
Gizmodo: In the case of protection, what protection is needed to avoid not going back into this transformation of American workers?
Sen Sanders: I think we have cleaned it in some sources or any other cases and some unions have begun discussing it. If it is labor productivity, become more productive with AI if you are doing the job now, I want to earn you.
What does that mean? This means a short job week, a 32 hour work week, which we are fighting for fighting, for which there is no harm. Again, the main point is that workers have benefited from increasing productivity, not just CEOs. At the moment, this is not the case, so we’ve been able to change it.
Gizmodo:: If a chief executive officer says, “I have automated these things and I need less workers,” what should the response be?
Sen Sanders: OK. See, we have found that this technology benefits employees more than CEO. So if a company develops AI that allows workers to become more productive, what we want to see is a short work week that does not harm.
The other things that I am concerned about, which exceed the economy and the possibility of loss of huge jobs, are two very important things: mental health and human well -being.
Gizmodo:: What does the senator mean?
Sen Sanders: People interact with artificial intelligence every day, with robotics. What is the impact on mental health and human well -being?
If you spend your whole day to talk to a chatboat rather than talking to friends or family, what would you be? What kind of problem develops?
We know that in America right now, many young people are having a lot of trouble talking to other people because they spend so much time on the Internet. And there are people, literally, people in the world of technology, who say, “Look, if you can’t make a friend, go to a chatboat if you are very lonely and you can develop a friend right there.” I am not sure it’s good for people.
Gizmodo:: There is an idea that people are lost, AI is erasing our identity, our role in society…
Sen Sanders: Well, do you know this expression, “The operation was a success, unfortunately the patient died”?
In this context, the system is working well. We are developing all kinds of technology: you will be able to do it, you will be able to do it. Unfortunately, people are going to get lost in that development. And they will become more dissatisfied, more and more mentally unstable, more lonely.
So, we want to make sure that technology benefits people economically as well as emotional people. It can be the driving force.
Gizmodo:: Did you talk to the Tech CEO or experts about this?
Sen Sanders: I’ve talked to the CEOs. Funny that you have mentioned it. I will not mention his name, but I got the phone with the world’s top experts about artificial intelligence two hours ago.
Gizmodo:: Have they shared your concerns? Did they give a solution?
Sen Sanders: They are all different. He did I talked to someone yesterday, not so much.
There are differences in opinion. On several large issues. Number one: What effect AI will have on the economy? Some people say that there will be a lot of work damage. I tend to agree with them.
Other people don’t say so much, new jobs will be created. It will be like every other technical revolution. Lost jobs, jobs have been created, not such a big deal. So people do not agree. I believe it is not like the industrial revolution. I think it can be much more deadly.
Second: This is not the fiction of science. There are, very wise people here – and I have talked to one today only one – who is very worried that people will not be able to control the technology and artificial intelligence will actually dominate our society. We won’t be able to control it. It may be able to control us. This is the type of scene in the Dumsod – and there is some concern about it among the very knowledgeable people in the art.
Gizmodo:: Are you personally optimistic or about AI, for workers, for society?
Sen Sanders: This is a broad question. We now have the worst president in the history of the United States in the office.
We are watching all over the world, democracy itself is under threat. We see a terrible war in Ukraine, a terrible war in Gaza. So I think this is not a great moment for humanity.
I would hope, however – up to the rise – there is – which we can turn it around. And many other things use artificial intelligence and robotic benefits to improve human life. To ensure we can erase poverty. That can have a decent value of all our people’s lives. It’s to do
Billionaors control the greed process. However, ordinary people must control the future.
Gizmodo:: A final question: Do you believe that AI can be used to strengthen union and labor rights in any fashion, or it is threatening for inherently organized labor?
Sen Sanders: I think it’s more than threat at the moment. And I think that bad trade policies in the United States are being used in the 70s.
In other words, what employers say is: “Look, I want you to spend salary or or
So I think we have been able to combine the trade union movement to become a militant to stand against the AI danger to the workers’ rights.