A cashier at the grocery store asked me if AI checkouts were taking jobs and I froze

It was last Saturday at the Piggly Wiggly on 3rd street. The self checkout machines were lined up and the lady ringing me up looked at them and said softly "you think i'll still have this job in 5 years?" I didn't know what to say. I mumbled something about automation but really it hit me how real this fear is for regular people. Has anyone else been put on the spot like that?

3 comments

3 Comments

nathana482mo ago

Sat there for a second before I answered, because honestly I used to think this whole AI job thing was overblown. Remember telling my wife last year that robots would never replace the human touch in stores. But after watching that cashier's face, something clicked. It's one thing to read news articles about automation, but quite another to have someone look you in the eye and wonder if they'll be working next Christmas. Changed my whole view on it, I admit.

lindab492mo ago

Used to brush it off myself. Thought people were just panicking over nothing, the way they do with every new technology. But seeing it happen in front of you, watching someone's whole world hanging on a self-checkout machine, that changes things. Hard to go back to the old way of thinking after that. You can't unsee the look on their face.

jamesf2621d ago

Hold on let me push back on this a little lol. The cashier at my local store said the same thing to me and I just told her look, self checkouts have been around for years and you're still here. People panic over every new thing but most of us still prefer a real cashier when we have a cart full of stuff or need help. The machines break down all the time too, I see them flashing error messages constantly. Plus these companies are saving money on labor right now but they're spending it on maintenance and theft prevention with those machines. I don't buy the doom and gloom narrative, the world adapts and people find new jobs.