Orly Lobel believes technology can make the world a better place--and she knows in 2022, that makes her a bit of a contrarian. Lobel, a law professor specializing in labor and employment at the University of San Diego in California, has studied how technology and the gig economy affects workers. That has made her familiar with the potential disruptions caused by tools like automated résumé screening and apps that use algorithms to assign work to people. Yet Lobel feels discussion about automation and AI is too stuck on the harms these systems create. In her book The Equality Machine: Harnessing Digital Technology for a Brighter, More Inclusive Future, Lobel encourages a sunnier view.

We often hear of the dark side of artificial intelligence (AI), how it will plunge us into a dystopian world of lost privacy and bad automated decisions, culminating in the robots killing us all. Professor Orly Lobel's The Equality Machine: Harnessing Digital Technology for a Brighter, More Inclusive Future (Public Affairs, October 2022) offers a very different view – one of optimism. Orly's book is an exuberant and insightful account of the bright side of AI and related digital technologies. Her book is filled with fascinating facts and engaging stories. Orly Lobel is the Warren Distinguished Professor of Law; University Professor; and Director, Center for Employment and Labor Policy at the U.C. San Diego School of Law.