Humans Need
Not Apply is a 2014
short Internet documentary film, directed, produced, written, and edited by CGP
Grey. The film focuses on the future of the integration of automation into
economics, as well as the impact of this integration to the worldwide
workforce. It was released online as a YouTube video [link below].
The film focuses on the topic of robots' rapidly increasing usefulness through human society, discussing how automation will lead to a future where human labour is no longer required. The film's title is a play on Irish need not apply, a phrase said to be used on job postings in the 19th century.
Early on, an analogy is made describing how humans once displaced horses from their jobs (by creating mechanical muscles such as automobiles), dismissing the argument that humans will always find new work, seeing as horses are not nearly as much used now. This analogy finishes by connecting the creation of mechanical minds, or "brain labor", will lead to robots ousting humans out of their occupations. Grey also discusses how economics is the force behind a future based upon automation. Grey concludes by stating that 45% of the workforce could be replaced by bots, a figure which is inclusive of professional, white-collar, and low-skill occupations, and higher than the 25% unemployment figure of the Great Depression. Grey further states that even creative occupations are not secure, mentioning the included bot-composed music in the background of his video.
Additionally, the viewer is reminded that the short film is not discussing or portraying a future based upon science fiction, using examples such as Baxter, self-driving cars (referred to as autos in the film) and IBM's Watson.
Premise
The film focuses on the topic of robots' rapidly increasing usefulness through human society, discussing how automation will lead to a future where human labour is no longer required. The film's title is a play on Irish need not apply, a phrase said to be used on job postings in the 19th century.
Early on, an analogy is made describing how humans once displaced horses from their jobs (by creating mechanical muscles such as automobiles), dismissing the argument that humans will always find new work, seeing as horses are not nearly as much used now. This analogy finishes by connecting the creation of mechanical minds, or "brain labor", will lead to robots ousting humans out of their occupations. Grey also discusses how economics is the force behind a future based upon automation. Grey concludes by stating that 45% of the workforce could be replaced by bots, a figure which is inclusive of professional, white-collar, and low-skill occupations, and higher than the 25% unemployment figure of the Great Depression. Grey further states that even creative occupations are not secure, mentioning the included bot-composed music in the background of his video.
Additionally, the viewer is reminded that the short film is not discussing or portraying a future based upon science fiction, using examples such as Baxter, self-driving cars (referred to as autos in the film) and IBM's Watson.
Production and Funding
The film was
funded through Subbable, a crowdfunding website. Grey used this website as a
means to support his projects, before moving to Subbable's successor Patreon.
Reception
Humans Need
Not Apply was covered by
several publications, including Business Insider, The Huffington Post,
and Forbes. Coverage of the video complimented its presentation, calling
the video "well-produced". These publications also praised its
premise, calling it "thought-provoking", and "compelling",
but also maintaining that the points and topics brought up in the video were
"terrifying". Bruce Kasanoff of Forbes commented
that the video was "sobering," and "suggests, in a convincing
fashion, that many
human jobs will disappear over the coming years, because automation
will do them faster, better, and cheaper." After a few days of release,
the video reached one million views. As of June 2017, Humans Need Not Apply
has reached over 8.7 million views.
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The 15 minute video is on YouTube at:
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