In 1932, the English author Aldous Huxley published Brave New World, in which he describes a future world dominated and controlled by machine learning and artificial intelligence.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a comprehensive branch of computing used to build intelligent machines capable of performing tasks that typically require human intelligence. It is an interdisciplinary science with multiple approaches that cut across all sectors of the technology industry.

As the use of machine learning and artificial intelligence grows, some ethical considerations regarding the impact it will have on society will need to be considered. Here are some of the ways it can do more harm than good in the black community.

Employment

All over the world, countries including, but not limited to Japan, South Korea, Finland, Nigeria, and China, are focusing on math and science skills. It is estimated that 26% of all grade 12 students in the United States scored at or above the proficiency level on the NAEP math assessment. Of that number, more than half of Asians / Pacific Islanders (52%) achieved a math proficiency level of 6% or above, compared to 6% for Black grade 12 students. Based on 2015 national data, only 18% of black fourth-graders were proficient in reading with just 19% rated as proficient in math. The data for eighth-grade numbers was even worse, with just 16% of black students proficient in reading and 13% proficient in math. If kids can’t read or do math, they won’t be able to participate in the AI ​​boom.

Small businesses and entrepreneurship

Without the basic skills required to get a job in AI or machine learning fields, opportunities for black people can be reduced to the likelihood of starting a business in those fields. This can lead to a shrinking black labor pool and opportunities for small businesses that are essential for upward mobility and economic security.

Replace human labor with kiosks

When politicians plead for higher wages for jobs that are supposed to be entry-level and temporary jobs, it’s only a matter of time for technology to be used to protect the bottom line. Many black people work in service areas and we are already seeing jobs disappearing due to the expansion of self-service kiosks in fast food restaurants and the growth of contactless payments, credit cards and online orders. line.

Robotics

AI will not only transform the global economy, but many small local economies as well. Many jobs in these places have been lost due to robotics. The pandemic demonstrated this and accelerated the automation of tasks, which resulted in the unemployment of black workers and their replacement by machines. According to a recent study by the Brookings Institution, blacks are the most likely to see their jobs replaced by automation because: “Of the five occupations that employ the most black and Latino workers, four suffered the most losses. important during the pandemic: vendors, cashiers, cooks, waiters and waitresses.

Advances in automation driven by AI are here to stay. While improving productivity, these technologies can also turn blacks into a permanent class of serfs.