There's an old story that some people in the pro-tech lobby like to tell about progress. A mound of earth needs to be dug up and moved from one spot on a construction site to another. The site manager decides to use a mechanical digger, but gets chastised by a union representative: "Without your machine, that job could be honest work for ten men with shovels." "Yes," comes the reply, "and without your shovels, it could be honest work for 100 men with teaspoons." It seems to be a compelling fable about the future of work and the way we live: it's foolish and futile to resist advances in technology and the benefits they bring.

The London borough of Enfield has enlisted artificial intelligence Amelia to take on customer service tasks for its residents starting late this year. Developed by IPSoft, Amelia is a cognitive agent, capable of automating certain tasks as well as learn from its interactions. As to what makes Amelia a competent asset to the council, IPSoft says she is "[c]apable of analysing natural language, she understands context, applies logic, learns, resolves problems and even senses emotions." Amelia currently handles cognitive customer experience for professional services company Accenture and financial consultancy firm Deloitte. This will, however, be her first public sector role.