Fan Gang, Chairman of the China Development Institute (Shenzhen), delivered a speech at the Fifth Enterprise Innovation and Development Conference held from February 1st to 3rd in Dongguan, Guangdong Province.
Fan Gang pointed out that AI's industrial structure will have a massive impact and bring about dramatic changes to the future economic and employment landscapes. On one hand, this structural shift will impact and potentially eliminate many traditional industries; on the other hand, it is likely to spawn entirely new industries or revitalize sectors that were previously underdeveloped.
Discussing employment, he stated that AI will significantly disrupt the job market. However, he concurrently noted that the process of machines replacing human labor has been ongoing since the first Industrial Revolution. Yet, over two hundred years later, overall human employment has not diminished; instead, living standards have risen, and wages have increased. This process involves extensive industrial restructuring alongside technological advancement.
Fan Gang believes that as working hours shorten and leisure time increases, human demands evolve. When people have more free time and work less, their demand for services and education grows.
Fan Gang emphasized the need for a dual approach: recognizing the various challenges posed by AI while also seeing the new growth opportunities it presents. It is crucial to take seriously the potential problems of job displacement and unemployment, while also actively promoting the new industries and new forms of employment that AI may generate, including the growth stemming from new human demands.
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