Amid concerns about artificial intelligence and its impact on labor in manufacturing, it’s not difficult to draw a parallel between the current concerns and those that have surrounded other moments of technological progress. It was not so long ago that fears about computers and the internet circulated widely. And, before them, fears about steam engines, the telegraph, and the printing press—each at different points in history—dominated the public psyche, with claims that each, in turn, would render skilled tradesmen obsolete.

As we have seen in the past, fears about an uncertain future are a feature of progress, and they are understandable. Change can be daunting and unpredictable. However, that does not make the concerns well-founded. Too often, fear of the unknown and misconceptions about the applications of new tools dominate conversations, drowning out the positive impact of technology on business and workers. Though each of the above tools has its own use cases, they all share one critical feature: they increase individual productivity. As technology increases individual employees' productivity, each will generate more value for their organization.

Replacing Tasks, Not Roles

While technological innovation will always impact and be impacted by labor, the conversation extends beyond automation and replacing tasks or specific roles. It is a common tendency to view job roles as fixed, but, in reality, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Many critically important jobs that exist today did not exist 50 or 100 years ago; many didn’t even exist 20 years ago. It’s a powerful reminder of the consistent dynamism of human labor and innovation that should not fall by the wayside out of fear of uncertainty.

Automated manufacturing systems may reduce the necessity of human oversight for more mundane tasks in manufacturing, opening up workers’ potential to iterate and innovate. Take the sewing machine, for example. By automating the simple task of sewing, tailors, seamstresses, and housewives could significantly reduce the time spent sewing by hand and improve the consistency and quality of their work. That freed them to spend more time designing new clothes and adopting more sophisticated styles, and this newfound freedom later paved the way for a transformation of the clothing industry.

In a similar way, AI-enabled automation in manufacturing can enable manufacturers to spend more time optimizing processes or even developing new products. As we saw before the advent of the sewing machine, the creative potential was always there, but it was limited by inefficient processes. After all, the minutia is only one part of the job.

While people may fear automation replacing certain tasks, they should be careful not to lose sight of untapped potential and how employees, unburdened by monotonous tasks, can engage in higher-order ideation and decision-making. No matter the role, no matter the industry, there always exists greater potential for innovation and creative possibility.

Innovating New Tech, Reskilling Talent

Now, to say that AI won’t render some jobs/functions obsolete would be disingenuous. That said, the key to success in tech innovation is to reframe our thinking from a black-and-white perspective that pits technology and labor against each other and embrace a holistic view that incorporates the best of both worlds: one that enables both technology and our workforces to be both more efficient and more creative. Greater efficiency will not lead to obsolescence but an abundance of resources to drive future innovation.

In the short term, automation will improve operational efficiency and free up some aspects of labor. However, in the long run, we will continue to see a need for innovation and problem-solving, especially where data and AI are involved. Manufacturing facilities generate a vast amount of data in their everyday operations, and employees will need skilled employees to make use of it. The future of manufacturing jobs will be less focused on direct production tasks—to which AI is well-suited—and more concerned with data analysis and decision-making.

Organizations that embrace this shift now will stand out from the competition. They will be two steps ahead in creating a cycle of tech innovation and improvement, as well as continual development of technical and higher-order creative skills. By nurturing and investing in talent alongside tech innovation, we will maximize the greatest benefits of both for long-term success.

Talent + Tech: The Future of Manufacturing

Manufacturing’s future will be defined by ever-increasing cooperation between talent and technology. Technology and employees will each, in turn, gain new abilities that allow them to work together more effectively and efficiently than ever before. As a result, both will become more valuable to the workforce and their organizations, not less, as their individual and collective capabilities continue to grow.

Manufacturers are embarking on a new age of collaboration between people and technology, often dubbed the “4^th Industrial Revolution” or “Industry 4.0. While fear of the unknown is understandable, history shows us that being optimistic about the future of innovation and its long-term impact is more likely to yield success. By balancing investments in both talent and tech innovation, manufacturers can create new synergies between labor and technology that support sustainable operations and innovation in the long term.