#AI in workplaces

[insightfultake]

AI Colleagues Are Here: How Agentic Intelligence is Reshaping Workplaces

You arrive at the office, and before you even touch your desk, the day’s work is already in motion. Reports are prepared, emails are drafted, meetings are scheduled, and client follow-ups are handled—all without your intervention. It feels as if an invisible assistant has been working behind the scenes, anticipating your needs and executing tasks seamlessly. This isn’t a glimpse into the distant future but a reality shaped by agentic AI, a new generation of artificial intelligence that doesn’t just respond to commands but proactively thinks, plans, and acts, transforming the modern workplace in ways once thought impossible.

[dollsome-does-tumblr]

do you think it's weird or unfounded to not want to use chat gpt due to the environmental cost? i feel really strongly that i want to completely avoid it (and, like, recreational/work related ai in general) for that reason, but people seem to think this is really weird when i express that as a reason. but i feel like i should be able to make this call if i want to and that's a good reason to not use it. i don't know?!?!?! i don't get anything anymore?!?!?!

[horse-is-a-horse-of-course]

i don’t think this can replace real medical training

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Wellness surveillance makes workers unwell

I'm on tour with my new, nationally bestselling novel The Bezzle! Catch me in TORONTO on Mar 22, then with LAURA POITRAS in NYC on Mar 24, then Anaheim, and more!

"National conversation" sounds like one of those meaningless buzzphrases – until you live through one. The first one I really participated in actively was the national conversation – the global conversation – about privacy following the Snowden revelations.

This all went down when my daughter was five, and as my wife and I talked about the news, our kid naturally grew curious about it. I had to literally "explain like I'm five" global mass surveillance:

https://locusmag.com/2014/05/cory-doctorow-how-to-talk-to-your-children-about-mass-surveillance/

But parenting is a two-way street, so even as I was explaining surveillance to my kid, my own experiences raising a child changed how I thought about surveillance. Obviously I knew about many of the harms that surveillance brings, but parenting helped me viscerally appreciate one of the least-discussed, most important aspects of being watched: how it compromises being your authentic self:

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2014/may/09/cybersecurity-begins-with-integrity-not-surveillance

As I wrote then:

There are times when she is working right at the limits of her abilities – drawing or dancing or writing or singing or building – and she catches me watching her and gets this look of mingled embarrassment and exasperation, and then she changes back to some task where she has more mastery. No one – not even a small child – likes to look foolish in front of other people.

Learning, growth, and fulfillment all require a zone of privacy, a time and place where we are not observed. Far from making us accountable, continuous, fine-grained surveillance by authority figures just scares us into living a cramped, inauthentic version of ourselves, where growth is all but impossible. Others have observed the role this plays in right-wing culture war bullshit: "an armed society is a polite society" is code for "people who make me feel uncomfortable just by existing should be terrorized into hiding their authentic selves from me." The point of Don't Say Gay laws and anti-trans bills isn't to eliminate gender nonconformity – it's to drive it into hiding.

Given all this, it's no surprise that workers who face workplace surveillance in the name of "wellness" feel unwell as a result:

https://www.ifow.org/publications/what-impact-does-exposure-to-workplace-technologies-have-on-workers-quality-of-life-briefing-paper

As the Future of Work Institute found in its study, some technologies – systems that make it easier to collaborate and communicate with colleagues – increase workers' sense of wellbeing. But wearables and AI tools make workers feel significantly worse:

https://assets-global.website-files.com/64d5f73a7fc5e8a240310c4d/65eef23e188fb988d1f19e58_Tech%20Exposure%20and%20Worker%20Wellbeing%20-%20Full%20WP%20-%20Final.pdf

Workers who reported these negative feelings confirmed that these tools make them feel "monitored." I mean, of course they do. Even where these tools are nominally designed to help you do your job better, they're also explicitly designed to help your boss keep track of you from moment to moment. As Brandon Vigliarolo writes for The Register, these are the same bosses who have been boasting to their investors about their plans to fire their workers and replace them with AI:

https://www.theregister.com/2024/03/14/advanced_workplace_tech_study/

"Bossware" is a key example of the shitty rainbow of "disciplinary technology," tools that exist to take away human agency by making it easier to surveil and control its users:

https://pluralistic.net/2020/07/01/bossware/#bossware

Bossware is one of the stages of the Shitty Technology Adoption Curve: the process by which abusive and immiserating technologies progress up the privilege gradient as their proponents refine and normalize dystopian technologies in order to impose them on wider and wider audiences:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/02/24/gwb-rumsfeld-monsters/#bossware

The kinds of metrics that bossware gathers might be useful to workers, but only if the workers get to decide when, whether and how to share that data with other people. Microsoft Office helps you catch typos by underlining words its dictionary doesn't recognize; the cloud-based, "AI-powered" Office365 tells your boss that you're the 11th-worst speller in your division and uses "sentiment analysis" to predict whether you are likely to cause trouble:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/08/21/great-taylors-ghost/#solidarity-or-bust

Two hundred years ago, Luddites rose up against machines. Contrary to the ahistorical libel you've heard, the Luddites weren't angry or frightened of machines – they were angry at the machines' owners. They understood – correctly – that the purpose of a machine "so easy a child could use it" was to fire skilled adult workers and replace them with kidnapped, indentured Napoleonic War orphans who could be maimed and killed on the job without consequence:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/03/12/gig-work-is-the-opposite-of-steampunk/

A hundred years ago, the "Taylorites" picked up where those mill owners left off: choreographing workers' movements to the finest degree in a pseudoscientific effort to produce a kind of kabuki of boss-pleasing robotic efficiency. The new, AI-based Taylorism goes even further, allowing bosses to automatically blacklist gig workers who refuse to cross picket-lines, monitor "self-employed" call center operators in their own homes, and monitor the eyeballs of Amazon drivers:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/04/12/algorithmic-wage-discrimination/#fishers-of-men

AI-based monitoring technologies dock workers' wages, suspend them, and even fire them, and when workers object, they're stuck arguing with a chatbot that is the apotheosis of Computer Says No:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/01/11/robots-stole-my-jerb/#computer-says-no

There's plenty of research about AI successfully "augmenting" workers, making them more productive and I'm the last person to say that automation can't help you get more done:

https://www.ibm.com/thought-leadership/institute-business-value/en-us/report/augmented-workforce

But without understanding how AI augments class warfare – disciplining workers with a scale, speed and granularity beyond the sadistic fantasies of even the most micromanaging asshole boss – this research is meaningless.

The irony of bosses imposing monitoring to improve "wellness" and stave off "burnout" is that nothing is more exhausting, more immiserating, more infuriating than being continuously watched and judged.

Name your price for 18 of my DRM-free ebooks and support the Electronic Frontier Foundation with the Humble Cory Doctorow Bundle.

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/03/15/wellness-taylorism/#sick-of-spying

Image: Cryteria (modified) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:HAL9000.svg

CC BY 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en

[mpregstuff]

Muscular Dad-to-Be in Scrubs | In a busy hospital, a muscular man is getting ready to welcome his baby. Looking sharp in green scrubs and a white coat, he talks with his colleagues about taking care of patients. The break room buzzes with energy as people share ideas and laughter. Outside, sunlight pours in, bringing a fresh vibe to the day. Being a dad is new for him, and he’s excited about the journey ahead. At five months pregnant, he balances work and preparing for his family. It’s all about teamwork in this vibrant setting. Together, they support each other while navigating this amazing moment. More images are also available at https://mpregstuff.com.

[belle-dingle]

no wonder robert was struggling to get his head around working on the computers at caleb's, he completely missed the whole ai movement while he was in prison

[bogkeep]

also re: job application. that is the longest and most thorough job application i have ever written, making sure to highlight just how relevant my experiences and skills are, first drafted in a fugue state after the ten hour drive from sweden, and since then my friends have been giving me feedback like real pro editors (my phd student friend did some editor mode magics in word i had never seen before??? her powers are terrifying) and essentially helped me craft it to be the the best possible version of the application it can be. for my hotel job in the past my application was just a couple sentences written directly in the email, so i am being Super Serious and Professional this time!!!

and then the job listing site is like. do you wanna use our AI to write your application? :)

DON'T INSULT ME. DISINTEGRATE

[berrrydameyve]

okay do do you guys want anti-AI spiderverse badges??

Miles G saying "fuck ai, pick up a pencil." for example

[ciko43]

©S. G. Arts Ltd. https://www.sg-arts.com

I've gotten permission from the company and picked a few pieces from my previous project to share! My current workplace feels like a warm and happy home to me. There's even more awesome stuff coming—I’ll be able to share them in a little while!

[adulthumanproblem]

AI can't replace humans in language learning or even translation

Google translate is already only really useful in a pinch

Because here's the thing: you need to under culture as well

Take Japanese for example:

It has multiple levels of politeness. You can learn all the words and grammar just fine, sure, but without understanding why, when and for whom you are using which? Doesn't really get you anywhere

We all know there are many ways to say "I" in Japanese. That's largely dependent on who you are talking to and what your position in relation to theirs is

I thought "watakushi" was just a different way of saying "watashi", maybe depending on the region (like "atashi", which is mainly used in Tokyo and female coded)

But it turns out, "watakushi" is polite language, something you'd use towards a client or customer

There are different words for things like directions in polite language as well

And while it sounds complicated, I'd argue most languages do this. You speak differently with a client than you would a friend

But it's still something you need to know. While your friends may not care as much, a client or potential employer can absolutely be put off by it

That's why it doesn't really help to just repeat words and phrases

Culture and language are intertwined

English is used differently by every country, every region where it's spoken as well

[shallowseeker]

some ppl: oh haha i just, you know, stumbled into a lil bit of greatness

me: if anything approaches good know that my blood, sweat, tears, and possibly my little pinky finger were pitched into the swirling pot of black magic that only coughed up a reaction for my efforts a fraction of the time

[living-space-design]

[therobotmonster]

Meet Mrs. Natalie Nice...

Natalie is a hard worker in one of today's high-end scientific fields. Why, her boss wouldn't know where the test tubes were kept if not for her tireless efforts! Well, not quite tireless...

She's quite tired. Mrs. Nice has been burning the candle at both ends to impress the boss, and she's about to make a terrible mistake because of it.

Can you spot the mistake Mrs. Nice is making?

That's right! Carelessness in the workplace has consequences!

That wasn't coffee! (good) Coffee doesn't glow green!

Whoopsie! Now Mrs Nice is Mrs. Naughty...lus! Nautilus.

And Mrs. Nautilus is not happy!

By not watching what she was doing Natalie has wasted her whole lunch break turning herself into an abomination of science. All without noting dosage, temperature, and other important factors, not to mention completely circumventing the double blind protocol. Her data is completely invalid for the larger project.

Don't be a Mrs. Nautilus, be a Mrs. Nice! Remember:

Take regular breaks, get plenty of rest, and-

-If the Goo's Alight, it's Not alright!

Drinking glowing goo is the 1% cause of monsterism in adults ages 18-35, please science responsibly, a message from your friends at Cocytus Comics.

Each pic used a different prompt around the basic format of:

Secretary with a bob-haircut, redhead, green blouse and pearls, , , comic panel by Jack Kirby and Alex Toth, 1968, in the style of 60s Marvel

a secretary with lavender skin, tentacles for hair, , , comic panel by jack kirby and alex toth, 1968, in the style of 60s marvel

[koszmarnybudyn]

Finished a sketch book, drew some SAYER doodles, mostly human designs, cause well they dont usually have physical forms.

[mpregstuff]

Creative Dad-to-Be in Action | In a sleek office full of plants and desks, a medium-built dad-to-be is on a mission. With a blue sweater over his gray shirt, he stands confidently in front of his colleagues. Holding a whiteboard filled with his brilliant ideas, he’s ready to share his vision. Everyone is all ears, excited to hear what this creative mind has cooked up. He’s been on this journey for 5 months and has lots to talk about! With his charm and unique perspective, he makes the workplace lively. Who says a pregnancy can't be an adventure? This dad is proving that creativity knows no bounds. More images are also available at https://mpregstuff.com.

[ai-higurashi]

Get in loser, we're going shopping