One of the central topics of discussion at this year’s World Economic Forum gathering of the global elites at Davos, Switzerland, both on the public platforms and in the private suites where much of the real business is done, is artificial intelligence (AI).
Yann LeCun, Meta’s lead AI scientist and pioneer of AI attends the Annual Meeting of World Economic Forum in Davos, January 16, 2024. [AP Photo/Markus Schreiber]
AI represents a major advance in technology with the capacity to enormously develop the productivity of labour and thereby provide the basis for social advancement.
But its development under the social relations of capitalism, based on the private ownership of the means of production (including so-called intellectual property) and the extraction of private profit, means it will not have this effect but the reverse.
This fact of economic and political life, which poses the need for the establishment of socialist economic relations, is acknowledged, albeit indirectly, in the Global Risks Report prepared by the WEF for this week’s meeting.
It said the convergence of technological advances and geopolitical dynamics, an oblique reference to the rise of militarism led by the US, would likely create a new set of winners and losers in advanced and developing countries alike.
“If commercial incentives and geopolitical imperatives, rather than public interest, remain the primary drivers of the development of… AI and other frontier technologies, the digital gap between high- and low-income countries will drive a stark disparity in the generation of related benefits—and risks. Vulnerable countries and communities would be left further behind, digitally isolated from turbocharged AI breakthroughs impacting economic productivity, finance, climate, education and health care, as well as related job creation.”
In other words, rather than becoming a means to end global social inequality and impoverishment the development of AI, according to the profit motive and the interests of the major capitalist powers, will worsen it.
In another section of the document, it points to the vast implications of AI and other advanced technologies.
“Unchecked proliferation of increasingly powerful general purpose AI technologies will radically reshape economies and societies over the coming decade… It will also interact with parallel developments. Intentional misuse is not required for the implications to be profound.
“Novel risks will arise from self-improving generative AI models that are handed increasing control over the physical world, triggering large-scale changes to socioeconomic structures.”
One is reminded of the observation by Marx in the Communist Manifesto that the bourgeoisie is like the sorcerer’s apprentice who had conjured up spirits from the nether world which he did not know how to control.
And at a deeper level it recalls Marx’s analysis that the objective historical necessity for socialism, achieved through social revolution carried out by the working class, arises from the contradiction between the development of the productive forces and the social relations of capitalism in which they are encased.
The alternative to this perspective is the descent into barbarism of which war is most obvious expression.
AI, as the WEF report pointed to, plays a critical role here.
“The creep of machine intelligence into conflict decision-making—to autonomously select targets and determine objectives—would significantly raise the risk of accidental or intentional escalation over the next decade,” it said.
Others have also been sounding warnings. Back in October, in an interview with the Financial Times (FT), the chair of the US Securities and Exchange Commission, Gary Gensler, said unless a way was found to control the use of AI platforms in the financial system then a crisis was “nearly unavoidable” in the next decade.
He said the use by market participants of the same AI models could generate “herd” behaviour and unleash a crisis.
These warnings were echoed by the governor of the Bank of Spain, and the chair of the Basel Committee in Banking Supervision, Pablo Hernández, in an interview with the FT on the eve of the Davos meeting.
He said fast-developing technology, in particular AI, “could change the course of history, not necessarily for the good.”
The increase in economic problems over the past decade meant that greater international cooperation was needed.
“However, what we are observing at the geopolitical level shows that reaching common agreements is becoming more and more difficult. That is a concern for me, and it is a concern for many people,” he said.
“Financial stability is only one dimension, there are many other potentially more important consequences related to AI.… If we are not able to give a co-ordinated global response, the likelihood of getting the right solution to these challenges will be reduced.”
But as the need for global cooperation increases, the prospect for achieving it founders on a central contradiction of the capitalist system—that between the integrated and interconnected world economy and system of rival nation-state and great powers, each pursuing its own interests.
The increased use of AI in all sections of industry will also lead to what is euphemistically termed the “restructuring” of the labour market.
Last March Goldman Sachs issued a report saying that AI could lead to the automation of a quarter of the work carried out in the US and the euro zone.
It said AI systems that generate content indistinguishable from human output could increase annual gross domestic product by 7 percent over the next decade. But this increase in productivity would result not in the material improvement in living standards but in increased profit.
The report said AI would bring “significant disruption” to the labour market with some 300 million workers in major economies exposed to its effects and that two-thirds of all jobs were exposed to some degree of automation.
A survey conducted by the accounting firm PwC of global chief executives, released as the Davos meeting began, said a quarter of them expected that AI would lead to a reduction in employment of 5 percent this year. Some 46 percent said that the use of generative AI which can generate text, images and code in seconds would boost profits over the course of the next year.
These reports and surveys underscore the enormous potential of AI for increasing wealth but that left in the hands of the capitalist ruling classes it will not bring social advancement but further inequality and misery. Rather than bringing about the global cooperation needed for its harmonious development, it will only intensify the geopolitical conflicts and tensions already manifesting themselves in war.
TORONTO – Roots Corp. may have built its brand on all things comfy and cosy, but its CEO says activewear is now “really becoming a core part” of the brand.
The category, which at Roots spans leggings, tracksuits, sports bras and bike shorts, has seen such sustained double-digit growth that Meghan Roach plans to make it a key part of the business’ future.
“It’s an area … you will see us continue to expand upon,” she told analysts on a Friday call.
The Toronto-based retailer’s push into activewear has taken shape over many years and included several turns as the official designer and supplier of Team Canada’s Olympic uniform.
But consumers have had plenty of choice when it comes to workout gear and other apparel suited to their sporting needs. On top of the slew of athletic brands like Nike and Adidas, shoppers have also gravitated toward Lululemon Athletica Inc., Alo and Vuori, ramping up competition in the activewear category.
Roach feels Roots’ toehold in the category stems from the fit, feel and following its merchandise has cultivated.
“Our product really resonates with (shoppers) because you can wear it through multiple different use cases and occasions,” she said.
“We’ve been seeing customers come back again and again for some of these core products in our activewear collection.”
Her remarks came the same day as Roots revealed it lost $5.2 million in its latest quarter compared with a loss of $5.3 million in the same quarter last year.
The company said the second-quarter loss amounted to 13 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended Aug. 3, the same as a year earlier.
In presenting the results, Roach reminded analysts that the first half of the year is usually “seasonally small,” representing just 30 per cent of the company’s annual sales.
Sales for the second quarter totalled $47.7 million, down from $49.4 million in the same quarter last year.
The move lower came as direct-to-consumer sales amounted to $36.4 million, down from $37.1 million a year earlier, as comparable sales edged down 0.2 per cent.
The numbers reflect the fact that Roots continued to grapple with inventory challenges in the company’s Cooper fleece line that first cropped up in its previous quarter.
Roots recently began to use artificial intelligence to assist with daily inventory replenishments and said more tools helping with allocation will go live in the next quarter.
Beyond that time period, the company intends to keep exploring AI and renovate more of its stores.
It will also re-evaluate its design ranks.
Roots announced Friday that chief product officer Karuna Scheinfeld has stepped down.
Rather than fill the role, the company plans to hire senior level design talent with international experience in the outdoor and activewear sectors who will take on tasks previously done by the chief product officer.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
VANCOUVER – Mediated talks between the union representing HandyDART workers in Metro Vancouver and its employer, Transdev, are set to resume today as a strike that has stopped most services drags into a second week.
No timeline has been set for the length of the negotiations, but Joe McCann, president of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724, says they are willing to stay there as long as it takes, even if talks drag on all night.
About 600 employees of the door-to-door transit service for people unable to navigate the conventional transit system have been on strike since last Tuesday, pausing service for all but essential medical trips.
Hundreds of drivers rallied outside TransLink’s head office earlier this week, calling for the transportation provider to intervene in the dispute with Transdev, which was contracted to oversee HandyDART service.
Transdev said earlier this week that it will provide a reply to the union’s latest proposal on Thursday.
A statement from the company said it “strongly believes” that their employees deserve fair wages, and that a fair contract “must balance the needs of their employees, clients and taxpayers.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
MONTREAL – Travel company Transat AT Inc. reported a loss in its latest quarter compared with a profit a year earlier as its revenue edged lower.
The parent company of Air Transat says it lost $39.9 million or $1.03 per diluted share in its quarter ended July 31.
The result compared with a profit of $57.3 million or $1.49 per diluted share a year earlier.
Revenue in what was the company’s third quarter totalled $736.2 million, down from $746.3 million in the same quarter last year.
On an adjusted basis, Transat says it lost $1.10 per share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted profit of $1.10 per share a year earlier.
Transat chief executive Annick Guérard says demand for leisure travel remains healthy, as evidenced by higher traffic, but consumers are increasingly price conscious given the current economic uncertainty.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
