“I’m Afraid We Are Automating This Work Without Really Understanding It”

AI is often touted as a way to handle busy work to free people up for tasks that matter. But in the race to add automation to pretty much every job, it’s rare that people question what, exactly, people are being freed from, and which tasks actually matter. This interview with sociologist Allison J. Pugh explores what she calls “connective labor,” why it’s under threat from automation, who will be most affected, and what we’ll lose as humans if it disappears.