How AI Is Confronting Inequality Through Mass Utility

This month, as world leaders gathered at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Artificial Intelligence and the rapid application of generative AI dominated discussions. At a time of mass geopolitical and economic uncertainty, the world of business and politics is focused on the most significant societal catalyst of all: technology. The arrival of generative AI has permeated the public conscience at an unprecedented pace. The topic is at a fever pitch, and its impact on mind and matter as it relates to the world of work is extraordinary.

While technology has had significant effects on power structures since its inception, the world has never seen the raw proliferation of power and peril like that presented by Generative AI. A recent survey by Business Insider revealed that 51% of global executives, 50% of global CEOs, and 52% of US CEOs believe job replacement could be one of the effects of this wave of technology, with 68% of CEOs saying AI could help their business increase sales and profits.

This is equally met with counterarguments that AI will elevate human capital to create a new wave of work. Yet understandably, with predictions of enormous hype, hope, and fear, the default conclusion is to assume that this technology is like the many waves before, lucrative above transformative and built and run by an industry that is mainly homogenous and confined to a small elite. There have been platitudes of intent to harness technology for a better tomorrow, but they have largely fallen short in practice.

The cause and correlation between technology and equality has been, up until now, a cautionary tale. However, what is unique about generative AI, unlike any other technological breakthrough to date, is the speed to capability and almost immediate mass utility it creates. What that means is a shift away from the world of technocratic structures and power vacuums to one of broad inclusion from the outset.

As described by computer scientist Emily Reid, CEO of AI4ALL, a US-based nonprofit dedicated to increasing diversity and inclusion in AI education, research, development, and policy, "AI is transforming the pipeline of technology practitioners and creating a more inclusive, human-centered discipline. Simply put, now we are coding in English."

This means putting a technology that can solve real-world problems at the fingertips of those who need it the most. These tools can be available to everyone, from retired billionaires to immigrants, and have mass usability. One of the most fundamental challenges to creating a better tomorrow economically, politically, and globally is equality. As we witness a growing poverty gap, the looming question is the impact of these two significant realities on the other. Will generative AI solve or worsen inequality and create more diverse and united workforces? Or will this technology further the ever increasing pay and poverty gap?

Against a growing sense of doom, there are accurate signals that this technology can enable a more diverse and fairer workplace. Here are three examples by which the democratization of AI has created positive pathways for diversity.

AI In the Fight for Paid Leave

In December 2023 ‘Girls Who Code’ and Moms First, founder Reshma Saujani and her team launched PaidLeave.ai, a first-of-its-kind chatbot designed to tell New Yorkers (with plans for 13 eligible states + DC) exactly how much paid time off they're entitled to and help guide them through the application process. Saujani, a long-time advocate of female equality, approached Open AI's Sam Altman with the short rhetorical question, 'What if the tool itself can help close the poverty gap?' Altman saw the opportunity immediately and connected her with Novy.ai – an OpenAI-connected startup that helps scale AI projects, and together with Craig Newmark Philanthropies, they brought this tool to life.

The system uses OpenAI's GPT-4 to help parse the query, translate any language, and determine eligibility based on unique circumstances. An action plan of required forms and documentation is emailed to the user. Saujani believes that every dollar parents retain is a step towards a better future for their families and a better America. Each user of this tool benefits not just themselves but the cause for paid leave nationally.

At the cornerstone of this approach is that the USA remains the only developed nation globally without a federal policy to guarantee paid leave. With generative AI, Saujani is taking the 'if we build it, they will come' approach by demonstrating the value of change through increased uptake and resultant economics. In an interview for Forbes, Saujani shared her experience talking to governors across the US, who point to low uptake of paid leave in places where it does exist, which, in her view, misses the most fundamental challenge of all: availability does not equal accessibility.

She shares her experience talking to pregnant women and exhausted parents already wholly overwhelmed and left to navigate what she calls "patchwork systems of dense, government-penned legal jargon." By putting the information at their fingertips, Paidleave.ai aims to drive meaningful change by enabling demonstrable action.

AI as an ageless opportunity

The rapid permeation of generative AI has landed one of the most atypical labor forces in working history. For the first time, five generations are active in the global workforce simultaneously, and based on data from the Pew Research Centre, there are almost as many older people as younger people at work. These are five generations of people who have grown up in a vastly different world, each with its own defining characteristics, values, and attitudes shaped by the formative events of their time. This workforce is poised to face paradigmatic changes in modern workforce history. Perhaps surprisingly, the rapid permeation of the most consequential technology this workforce of all ages has ever seen also can be a leveler across groups often divided by stigma.

This is because studies have found, that Gen Z workers are as likely to worry about AI's impact on their workplace skills as older workers. This may seem surprising for a generation of which 96% do not want to use a restroom without their cell phone. There is an inherent assumption they are the core digital incumbents on this earth, born and raised in a world of screens. However, interestingly, data shows that when it comes to careers, they share the same fears as those who started their careers with typewriters.

Fear of the future and professional relevance is, for many, an ageless conundrum. A 2023 survey conducted by Jobs for the Future's Centre for Artificial Intelligence & the Future of Work showed that workers of all generations are in the same boat, worrying about the same things and eager to learn and grow. AI and its ease of use present an opportunity among all professional levels and ages of employees and, in that sense, can become a technology leveler, empowering a broad-spectrum workforce to harness their collective potential.

AI in Accessibility

The mass availability of Generative AI and its application in day-to-day life can be a game changer for people with disabilities. Computers have demonstrated the ability to enact senses to hear, see, and reason with remarkable accuracy. Yet according to a 2023 World Health Organization study, just one in 10 people globally has access to such. Companies like Microsoft, through their AI for Accessibility program, are harnessing the power of AI to enable people with vision, hearing, cognitive, learning, mobility disabilities, and mental health conditions to do more in three specific scenarios: employment, modern life, and human connection.

The program, which acts as a seed investor and accelerator for companies and startups in the AI for assisted technology space and then helps these products scale for mass application and integration, is seeing significant results in solving for real-world inclusion. One such example is Helpicto, an application that turns voice commands into images, thus enabling children with autism to understand situations better and communicate with others.

AI is creating a fundamental shift in helping solve real-world problems, demystifying the once impossible at an unthinkable pace. As this technology becomes more powerful and radically cheaper, its computational power is becoming increasingly mainstream. There is an opportunity for once-marginalized communities to leverage the computing power for increased social capital. The winners and losers of this era are yet to be fully understood, but for many, there may finally be a chance to partake.