The book was praised for lucidly arguing its bleak viewpoint. Libertarian economist Robin Hanson argues that the recent ominous labor trends may have causes other than automation, such as "demographics, regulation, worker values, organization practices, and other technologies".
Many economists disagree with Ford's thesis that the IT revolution is fundamentally different from previous technological revolutions. Ford downplays the benefits of expanding education ("The problem is that the skills ladder is not really a ladder at all: it is a pyramid, and there is only so much room at the top"), and argues for a "dramatic policy response" such as a guaranteed basic income. Companies like YouTube and Instagram are based on "tiny workforces and huge valuations and revenues". Ford believes that unlike previous centuries, the current emerging technologies will fail to generate new forms of employment he predicts that new industries will "rarely, if ever, be highly labor-intensive". Lawyers, radiologists and software designers have seen their work outsourced to the developing world. While technological advances in the previous century mainly displaced more uneducated laborers, the 21st century is seeing technology increasingly threatening skilled workers' jobs as well. The result could well be massive unemployment and inequality as well as the implosion of the consumer economy itself. At the same time, households are under assault from exploding costs, especially from the two major industries-education and health care-that, so far, have not been transformed by information technology. As progress continues, blue and white collar jobs alike will evaporate, squeezing working - and middle-class families ever further. Artificial intelligence is already well on its way to making "good jobs" obsolete: many paralegals, journalists, office workers, and even computer programmers are poised to be replaced by robots and smart software. Rise What are the jobs of the future? How many will there be? And who will have them? As technology continues to accelerate and machines begin taking care of themselves, fewer people will be necessary. Rise of the Robots: Technology and the Threat of a Jobless Future is a 2015 book by American futurist Martin Ford.
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