An alternative view on the future of the New Zealand workforce at this year's Festival of the Arts.
BERL has been delighted to support the New Zealand Festival of the Arts for many years, but imagine our excitement to hear that this year will feature an economist in Kinley Salmon: My Future, My Robot?
Born and raised in Nelson, Kinley is a fellow economic consultant, he previously worked at McKinsey and Company, and now he’s an author publishing his book Jobs, Robots and Us in 2019.
These days he’s based in Washington DC working as an economist for the World Bank, but Kinley’s book focuses on New Zealand and what the future of work will look like for New Zealanders.
There have been many frightening predictions about the future facing workers around the world, with scenarios of AI and robotic automation decimating available jobs. Speaking to the Otago Daily Times following the launch of his book, Kinley is quoted as saying that while change is coming, "The evidence suggests the robots are not that close to the gate”. Rather he imagines a future where we can find ways to make work more meaningful, inclusive and interesting, while enabling technology to reduce menial, repetitive or dangerous tasks.
Join us to hear Kinley detail what AI and automation could do to our workplaces, education system, and domestic lives. Should we be worried or excited? And what can we do to build a positive future for work in New Zealand?