AI revolution and jobs in India

For Indian public policy thinking, there is no looming threat of large-scale job loss. A vast class of global production, of goods and services, remains in play for India

We are all in a tizzy about what new-age “artificial intelligence” (AI) systems can do. Does this harm India's hope of large-scale labour-intensive production? The picture is more optimistic than meets the eye. The AI revolution is mere statistical models; there isn't anything approaching human capabilities yet. The robots are dazzling in some narrow contexts only. Humans are remarkable when compared with today’s robots. There is a vast class of global production problems that can be done in India. Our policy puzzles remain the traditional ones.

First came the computers that could play chess and defeat Garry Kasparov. Then came