Next week, I’ll be embarking on a week-long journey across the country for a series on Marketplace.org and our radio programs, called “Robots Ate My Job.” I’ll look at how technology is impacting the future of jobs in America, and find out who’s winning — and losing — at the (metallic) hands of robots.
I’ll talk to Americans all over the country whose daily lives have been impacted by technological advances. From Ph.D. students at Carnegie Mellon to blue-collar workers in Indiana experiencing job growth because of robots, from grocery store clerks in California whose jobs really were eaten by robots to an Internet retailer in Arkansas who is creating jobs by having robots and humans work together. You’ll even hear some wisecracks from a robot standup comic and learn how former Marketplace General Manager Jim Russell sold my voice to a robotic research firm in the ’90s — true story!
And that’s not all. Throughout the week, as I hit the road for a cross-country trip from New York to San Francisco, I’ll attempt to make the entire journey without having any human interaction. My only travel companion: Wilson, the robo-dog.
Think I can make it in one piece to California by week’s end? Tune in to find out.
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