myrmepropagandist3d ago

1. Replace workers with AI.
2. Now instead of wages you pay a company for AI services.
3. Despite the likely decline in quality of the work, suppose you become dependent as a company on this service. Suppose you make it work.
4. AI is heavily subsidized by venture capital, its priced lower than the cost to provide the service to attract early adopters (and to lock companies like you in.)
5. Inevitably the AI bubble bursts, AI services jack up their prices.

How is paying rent better than wages?

Show threadwasabi brain
@futurebird someone needs to show me the math for like replacing checkout counter workers earning $20-25/hr including benefits versus installing millions of dollars in specialized equipment plus the compute for these AI auto checkouts - not even including model training! Plus inevitably just paying foreign workers to review the recorded video when the models fail.
May 4 at 2:48amWeb
Show threadmyrmepropagandist3d ago

@virtualinanity

Automated checkout was supposed to reduce the number of cashiers needed at stores. But now they need a person to fix the machines and people to help the people using the self-checkout... meaning it didn't really reduce labor costs much at all.

Things like checking ID, reversing charges all require an employee.

And in most stores they still need to have some regular checkout since some customers just CANNOT do it.

Show threadEnola Knezevic3d ago
@futurebird @virtualinanity Also it is the customers doing the cashiers' work for free, not the machines.
Show threadTor Iver Wilhelmsen2d ago
@rhelune @futurebird @virtualinanity They were already doing that by picking their own groceries from the shelves (that used to be a job), like they pump their own gas (gas station attendants used to do that) or park their cars instead of using a valet.
Show threadSherri W (SyntaxSeed)2d ago

@virtualinanity @futurebird I literally double-scanned an item by accident at one of those & I couldn't delete it without an employee. They simultaneously want to trust customers to self checkout but don't trust them at all.

Not to mention the plexiglass corrals at the entrance & exits now to reduce theft but just makes the place feel un-welcoming. 🤦‍♀️