Construction and Farmer Robots Are The Latest A.I. Coming For Human Jobs

By Aaron Kesel

If Japan's Advanced Industrial Science and Technology Institute has its way, human construction workers might not be needed anymore. Meanwhile, a robot named Angus is being billed the farmer of the future.

Researchers have built HRP-5P, a humanoid robot that can handle several construction tasks. The prototype uses environment detection, object recognition, and sophisticated movement to install drywall by itself.

The construction bot is able to both hold up boards and fasten them with a screwdriver.

The farming robot, Angus, is also able to do functions on its own without human assistance. The bionic farmer is strong enough to hoist 800-pound pallets of vegetables and can move them from place to place on his own, Yahoo reported.

The startup behind Angus, Iron Ox, relies on a hydroponic system to conserve water and automation in place of humans.

It's important to note that Iron Ox still relies on human workers to clip its vegetables when they are ready for harvest. However, they aim to change that in the years to come with another robot for this function.

The average pay for the farming occupation is $13.32 per hour, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Replacing both construction and farming showcases what Elon Musk warned, that a universal basic income (UBI) — essentially, free cash handouts — “will be necessary over time if (AI) artificial intelligence takes over most human jobs.”

In May, Activist Post reported that University College London Hospitals (UCLH) and the Alan Turing Institute aimed to bring ‘game-changing’ benefits of artificial intelligence to NHS patients and replace some workers in the hospital.

Recently Activist Post also reported that even finance wasn’t safe from the robot apocalypse. China Construction Bank (CCB) opened a Shanghai branch run entirely by robots in a testing phase for finance with little to no human involvement.

Robots are beginning to take over every aspect of society. They are also headed for retail businesses delivering freight and eliminating truckers. But, again, robots malfunction. In fact, it sounds quite dangerous allowing a freight truck to drive itself; if the sensors break down on a big rig truck going 60-70 MPH, that’s potentially 40 tons barreling down the highway unattended except by artificial intelligence.

As Activist Post reported back in March, Uber had to halt nationwide testing of its A.I. vehicles following the death of a pedestrian in Arizona. And that was a car actually attended by a human backup operator.

Automation clearly isn’t a foolproof technology, and it can also be exploited by hackers for malicious purposes that could even include programming a bot to kill an individual.

Meanwhile, Activist Post recently reported that Amazon is considering opening 3,000 cashierless Amazon Go stores by 2021. A move into retail by the online giant would threaten convenience stores and fast-food chains across the U.S. by selling items to customers cheaper and faster. The other negative is that Amazon could start the "robot apocalypse." Current existing Amazon Go stores sell prepared sandwiches, salads, yogurt, and granola bars. That’s a market that is mostly occupied by small mom-and-pop convenience stores.

As this writer has written before on Steemit, we are shifting towards a working world with little or no humans, as automation and artificial intelligence begins to take over our jobs. It’s cheaper to hire a few robots which don’t need rest and benefits than to hire a few humans which need healthcare and retirement funds.

This is only the beginning of the robot apocalypse that will touch on every aspect of society by an estimate of 2025.

By @An0nkn0wledge

Aaron Kesel writes for Activist Post. Support us at Patreon. Follow us on Minds, Steemit, SoMee, BitChute, Facebook and Twitter. Ready for solutions? Subscribe to our premium newsletter Counter Markets.