ARTIFICIONOMICS

A new framework for integrating human and artificial intelligence elements in the workplace.

As Warren writes in his nonfiction debut, we stand at the threshold of a new technological era, one that will be defined by the increasing infiltration of AI and robotics into the workplace. The author, a risk management expert, views this change through the lens of workplace safety and has developed a program he calls ArtificIonomics to address various hygiene, safety, and harmony issues related to integrating AI, a technological advance whose importance he compares to the advent of the steam engine. Warren provides an overview of AI in the workplace, identifies the technology’s psychological, physical, and social risks, and then presents his framework, which is designed to ensure that “AI enhances rather than undermines human dignity, health, and safety.” The author addresses the emerging realities of autonomous vehicles and humanoid robots, which are becoming increasingly visible in contexts from disaster relief to health care to private security. Warren cites recent findings from corporate and government studies about the workplace dangers such things can create and advocates for what he calls a layered approach, including “engineering controls, functional safety systems, evolving standards, rigorous worker training, and proactive regulatory oversight.” Following the principles of ArtificIonomics, one first identifies the nature of the potential hazards, evaluates what best methods apply, then institutes controls tailored to each situation. Readers overwhelmed by the subject will be grateful for the clear, informed prose style Warren uses, although the text can grow repetitive (variations of the line “Artificial intelligence continues to reshape the workplace” occur many times throughout the book). Fortunately, the author’s resolutely humanistic approach more than compensates; this book is far from a mere safety and protocol manual. Warren consistently focuses on the ethics of these developing technologies, emphasizing that ethical guidelines regarding AI aren’t theoretical luxuries but rather operational necessities. We can only hope industries will listen.

A fascinating and far-ranging look at how new technologies are changing the ways in which we work.