We Are Not Machines

A good passage

As for the idea there will inevitably be winners and losers – are people really supposed to sit around and wait until they find out which they are destined to be? Which their children are destined to be? Metaphors about a looming ‘wave’ or ‘tsunami’ of change encourage us to see this process as analogous to a powerful force of nature – something that cannot be controlled, but can only be prepared for, and then mopped up after. But new technology doesn’t actually just unfold. It never has. It is created by people and implemented by people. How it changes the world is not just a technical matter, but a matter of power, control, design, culture, markets, institutions and ideas. The challenge at hand for humanity is the same as ever: to harness the power of our new machines without losing something of our minds, our bodies and our souls along the way. How best to do that is a question that can – and should – be contested.