“It’s a myth that technology and robots are eliminating jobs,” Stefano La Rovere, global director of robotics, mechatronics and sustainable packaging at Amazon La Rovere, told CNBC this week.
La Rovere said that contrary to the sentiment that new technology is replacing manual jobs, advanced robotics, artificial intelligence (AI) and other technologies are improving individuals’ roles.
He added that new technologies are leading to the creation of systems that are entirely new job categories — something Google CEO Sundar Pichai, the head of ChatGPT creator OpenAI, and other executives have spoken about in the past.
How Robotics and AI Helped People Find Jobs
According to the e-commerce giant, the introduction of new technologies has helped the company create more than 50,000 jobs across its distribution centers in Europe.
“In recent years, more than 700 new job categories have been created through the use of technology,” La Rovere said.
According to Amazon, the company has installed more than 1,000 new technologies across its European network of fulfillment centers over the past five years, for an overall investment of more than €700 million.
“Robots and technology help our employees…by reducing the walking distance between assignments, removing repetitive movements or (by) helping them lift heavy weights,” La Rovere was quoted as saying.
“In turn, our employees can learn new skills, they can learn new skills, they can learn new capabilities that allow them to progress toward their career goals,” he added.
