What to do about robots and artificial intelligence

Two weeks ago, I wrote in a column headlined "Please stop saying I'll be replaced by a robot" that fears over machines making humans redundant were often overblown and might well be self-defeating, and that it was better to focus instead on what robots could help people do better. Some readers welcomed what I had to say, others disagreed. One thoughtful rejoinder by Ms Ethel Tan Hui Yan was published in The Straits Times Forum under the headline "Let's not take AI lightly". Ms Tan wrote: "At present, robots have attained the level of intelligence where they help more than harm... But when intuitive AI (artificial intelligence) robots with a learning capacity that far exceeds that of man's are developed, they could very well make humans redundant in many jobs. "It is essential to talk about the augmented economy and the necessary industrial restructuring and educational reforms that need to be made, which will equip our workforce and prepare our younger generation for the challenge ahead." Mr Frederick Wong said in an e-mail that "AI will impact us deeply in the coming decade and not the next century as some might think.