This is Bloomberg Opinion Today, an updated Bayeux Tapestry of Bloomberg Opinion's opinions. Apple Inc. recently added audiobook narration to the growing list of occupations where algorithms are poised to replace humans alongside graphic designers, college essayists and limerick writers. Luckily, the fine art of newslettering remains (ahem) far beyond the capabilities of even the most sophisticated artificial intelligence software. Still, hope is at hand for those not fortunate enough to toil in the newsletter mines but still seeking gainful employment that won't disappear as robots take control.

If you're concerned that automation and artificial intelligence are going to disrupt the economy over the next decade, join the club. But while policymakers and academics agree there'll be significant disruption, they differ about its impact. On one hand, techno-pessimists like Martin Ford in "Rise of the Robots" argue that new forms of automation will displace most jobs without creating new ones. In other words, most of us will lose our jobs. On the flip side of the debate are techno-optimists such as Erik Brynjolfsson and Andy McAfee.

It may seem like artificial intelligence is quickly seeping into just about everything. While that might raise concerns about a Skynet-style takeover, the quiet secret about AI is that it isn't taking over. In fact, some experts believe that AI in its current form is starting to slow down, reaching its maximum capacity -- at least for the time being. In an interview with Wired, Facebook's head of AI, Jerome Pesenti, theorized that the development of artificial intelligence and machine learning is about to "hit the wall." According to Pesenti, the deep learning mechanisms that currently help power and push the advancement of AI are pushing up against their limitations. Some of that has to do with the lack of necessary computing power to continue improving.

Over the next decade, automation and artificial intelligence could throw 54 million Americans out of work. Here's everything you need to know: Why is automation a threat? Rapid technological advances are enabling machines to perform a growing number of tasks traditionally done by humans. Law firms now use artificial intelligence (AI) -- sophisticated computer programs that can learn from experience -- to conduct contract analysis, hunt for client conflicts, and even craft litigation strategy. McDon ald's is replacing drive-thru workers with order-taking AI, and cashiers with self-checkout kiosks.

Earlier this year, videos of a robot being kicked, hit with a chair, and shot at by its human owners spread online. Created by an LA-based production company, Corridor Digital, the videos were a parody of those released by Boston Dynamics, a company that has been making robots since 1992. You've almost certainly seen their videos. A robotic dog takes on a human in a tug of war. Sometimes the robots are cute, like the Sand Flea, which flicks itself effortlessly over 30ft walls.

It's clear from the start that the villains in this 2001 Steven Spielberg film are the humans. In a future where new robots are sold like car models, humans consistently use their creations as the scapegoat for very human problems. The humans ignored climate change until Manhattan was halfway underwater, tried to light Jude Law on fire, and abandoned Haley Joel Osment in the woods with nothing but an animatronic toy bear to take care of him (Teddy comes in clutch later, though). The robots in the movie are accused of taking up too much space and energy, and AI today is already being built without taking sustainability into much consideration, despite the opportunities it could present as a way to help reach climate change net-zero goals. If humans program the original goal of AI, then it's our own fault if it starts to do something we don't like.

This Halloween, we attempt to discuss what fears haunt HR about the future of work. Do you fear of AI taking over our jobs – the robot apocalypse as they call it? Does the visual of deserted workplaces – rife with cobwebs, haunted by the voices of former employees – where machines have taken over make you lose your sleep? We asked leaders engaged in HR, HR technology, and the future of work practices on what the biggest fears of HR are. Your HCM System controls the trinity of talent acquisition, management and optimization - and ultimately, multiple mission-critical performance outcomes.

But intuition might be deceiving. The best reason to doubt Yang's story is contained in productivity statistics, which measure the output of the gainfully employed and which traditionally rise rapidly during periods of technological change -- because even if workers are losing their jobs to the spinning jenny or the automobile, other workers should be increasing their productivity with the new technology's assistance. Lately this hasn't been happening. Instead productivity growth in the developed world has decelerated over the last decade. To quote a recent summary, in mature economies "labor productivity growth rates halved from an average annual rate of 2.3 percent in the period 2000-2007 to 1.2 percent from 2010-2017."

The robot apocalypse is nigh. Boston Dynamics' robots are doing backflips and opening doors for their friends. Oh, and these 7-foot-long robot arms can lift 500 pounds each, which means they could theoretically crush, like, six humans at once. The robot apocalypse is also laughable. Watch a robot attempt a task it hasn't been explicitly trained to do, and it'll fall flat on its face or just give up and catch on fire.

The biggest danger AI poses today isn't the potential of killer robots or Roko's Basilisk--it's the potential to scale bias and racism to the size of the internet. The latest example of this is an "ethnicity detection" algorithm marketed by Moscow-based NtechLab as an "upcoming feature" to the facial recognition technology it sells. The new algorithm which promises to accurately look at images of people and determine their ethnic background; an image that was on the site, but has since been removed due to public backlash, showed classifications like "European," "African," and "Arabic." While the image has been removed, ethnicity recognition is still listed as an upcoming product on the NtechLab site. Privacy advocates like the American Civil Liberties Union already decry the use of facial-recognition AI in most cases, making the case that widespread adoption of the technology would mean we would live under constant surveillance by police or large tech companies.