Workplace AI, robots and trackers are bad for quality of life, study finds

Exposure to new technologies including trackers, robots and AI-based software at work is bad for people's quality of life, according to a groundbreaking study from the the Institute for Work thinktank. Based on a survey of more than 6,000 people, the study analysed the impact on wellbeing of four groups of technologies that are becoming increasingly prevalent across the economy. The authors found that the more workers were exposed to technologies in three of these categories – software based on AI and machine learning; surveillance devices such as wearable trackers; and robotics – the worse their health and wellbeing tended to be. By contrast, use of more long-established information and communication technologies (ICTs) such as laptops, tablets and instant messaging at work tended to have a more positive effect on wellbeing. "We found that quality of life improved as the frequency of interaction with ICTs increased, whereas quality of life deteriorated as frequency of interaction with newer workplace technologies rose," the report said.