Are the robots about to take all the jobs? Don't hold your breath

The claim that nearly half of all US jobs are at risk of being automated has been repeated many times. But is it that straightforward? Gavin Kelly offers some facts that moderate the claim. He concludes that although the impact of evolving technology on jobs is currently impossible to predict, there are other, very real issues we should fret about: decreasing productivity levels, stagnant wages, and poor skills. We are said to live in an increasingly'post-fact' world but it remains the case that an eye-catching statistic can gain its own momentum and shape public debate regardless of its providence or even its author's original intent. So it is on the question of the rise of the robots and the future of work.