How Robots will Kill the 'Gig Economy

Gig Economy – Cease to Exist in 20 Years

According to new report from venture backed start-up Thumbtack, an online marketplace which tends to help skilled workers locate customers, the so-called gig economy would cease to exist in 20 years. The study has forecast that logistic companies from start-ups like Uber right to tech giants like Amazon would be replacing drivers as well as delivery workers with autonomous vehicles and drones.

The study discovered that extremely skilled workers like lawyers and accountants would no longer be assured of jobs at big firms - will be the new gig economy workers. Jon Lieber, chief economist at Thumbtack and Lucas Puente, an economic analyst at the firm had mentioned in a report that `the gig economy known will not last.

 In the past few years, analysts and reports have obsessively focused on transportation technology platforms such as Uber and Lyft and delivery technology platforms like Instacart and the workers required for these on-demand services. The fine focus on low-skilled `gigs’ tends to miss a larger story. The rather commoditized, interchangeable services seem to supplement income, not generating middle class lifestyles. Besides, these jobs are probably going to be automated over a period of time and performed by self-driving cars and drones'.

Autonomous Driving Technology – Reduce Death/Transportation Affordable

Uber had been frank with regards to its plans in replacing drivers with robots over a period of time. An Uber spokesperson informed CNBC that `autonomous driving technology has the ability to drastically reduce deaths in cars, making transportation even more affordable. That it is an exciting future and one Uber plans to be part of, but that transition for technical, regulatory as well as adoption reasons, at scale, would take some time. The spokesperson stated that `in the meanwhile, the focus is providing flexible work opportunities for many people in the world as possible’.

According to Oxford academics Car Benedikt Frey and Michael A. Osborne, around half of U.S. jobs seem to be at high risk of computerization over the next 20 years. Their discoveries had been published in 2013 and are unchanged, but there are some limitations like resistance from stakeholders and relative wage levels which would determine if a job is in fact automated, according to Osborne.

Estimates on how many jobs robots will ultimately displace would vary widely. Forrester analyst J.P. Gownder mentioned in a report that `forecast of 16% of jobs would disappear owing to automation technologies between now and 2025.

Supervised by `Robo-Boss’ by 2018

However that jobs equivalent to 9% of present day’s jobs would be created. Physical robots need repair and maintenance professional, one of the several job categories which would grow around in a much automated world’. From the global point of view, over 3 million workers would be supervised by a `robo-boss’ toward 2018, as predicted late last year by research and advisory firm Gartner.

Osborne has stated that jobs which are least likely to be automated initially are those which need a high level of creativity or emotional intelligence. For instance, school teacher jobs seem to be comparatively safe due to the elevated level of social intelligence needed to teach as well as mentor children.

 The Oxford study found positions which seem mostly susceptible to automation comprise of telemarketers, watch repairer, tax preparers, insurance underwriters, cargo and freight agents and others. In each category, some jobs would be automated very soon. Osborne states that `this gig economy is being pursued via digital platform and is actually getting individuals to automate themselves out of a job by delivering data back to the platform which could be utilised in providing an automated substitute.

Strong and sustainable growth for the luxury industry in Asia!

Asia as a whole is the heaven for the future of luxury industries more than ever. According to the economist’s views the economic crisis has little effect in the luxury industry throughout the world. For one simple reason: in the crisis, the poor get poorer, but the rich get richer, and the consumption of products they love increases because they have more resources to buy them, while general consumption stagnates or declines. In Europe, sales of luxury goods is expected to increase by more than 6% in 2013, while overall consumption stagnates, the United States will increase by more than 9% worldwide, 10% alone in Asia, excluding China and Japan, the increase in the sale of luxury goods is expected to be 15% and China at 20%, well beyond the expected GDP growth of 7%. This amazing forecast of 20% growth for luxury goods in China was announced on June 11 in Hong Kong by an luxury goods analyst at HSBC bank, in a speech entitled "The influence of China emerging market for luxury goods in Asia, "the French Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong. Asia, excluding China and Japan, is currently the site of half the growth of sales of luxury goods in the world. The Chinese take an even more important in this area. 75% of revenues from the sale of luxury goods in Hong Kong and Macau are made by mainland Chinese. They are more likely to make the trip to Hong Kong and Macao, as well as Taiwan and Singapore, where they buy luxury goods. When a Chinese travel abroad, he spends an average of 875 Euros in products like branded watches and wine for men, jewelry and readymade garments for women.. No doubt he will reckon with the effect of campaigns by the Chinese authorities against corruption and for a lifestyle of modest appearance. But it seems that for the time being, this effect is limited to only a little lower the price level of goods bought - a watch 4 000 and not more than 10 000 - and especially to moderate the exhibition luxury. The affluent Chinese still want luxury, but a more discreet luxury. To say that the Europe has its part to play in this game and she plays so well. It is further necessary that the luxury industries are not disabled by retaliation against the Customs anti-dumping measures against Chinese solar panels.

Will This Growth Sustain forever?

The new Investors and younger generation of India and China feels that the economic growth of their countries are non stopple and the growth is going to be there for ever. May be this growth continue for another decade, but at one stage, any growth has to see a saturation.

Saturation will be followed by the period of negative growth. The economic cycle will always see a high and a bottom. May be the growth and slow growth time periods may differ, but that will happen.

After the World War, Japan concentrated more on their economic growth. So Japan attracted lot of foreign investments from all over the world and the Japanese invested in all countries. The growth was phenomenol since 1950 to 1990. Their Stock Markets peaked in 1989 when Nikkei was trading around 39000.

Since then, for the past 20 years, Nikkei crossed its all time high of 39000. Now it is trading around 10000. It is one fourth of its all time high of 39000. So, a generation on Investors has never seen the peak in Japan.

The same will happen to India or China in the future. People has to learn lessons from Japan.