From NPR · · 2m
Workers train robots that could steal their jobs
Factory workers in India wear GoPros to train AI robots for jobs they might lose.
In brief
Factory workers in India wear GoPros to train AI robots for jobs they might lose. Indian textile workers record themselves using GoPros to train AI robots that could take their jobs. Originally reported by NPR.
Factory workers wear GoPros
Textile factory workers in India are asked to wear GoPros to record their jobs for AI training.
“Nobody told me anything about it”
Shoba Kirubakaran records aprons
Shoba Kirubakaran, a 40-year-old textile worker, says she's been told to wear a GoPro three times.
“I only know how to do this job”
AI training data needs
India provides millions of hours of egocentric data for AI robots to learn human tasks.
“Think of today's AIs as brains without a body”
Workers paid for data
Some workers earn $2.60 an hour to record themselves for AI training data.
“We are training them on how to package the aprons”
Objectways trains robots
Objectways, a Karur tech company, trains robots using GoPros to record repetitive tasks.
“The robot is like a child”
Rajeshkumar Ramaswamy shows robot training
Rajeshkumar Ramaswamy teaches robots to identify water bottles using GoPro recordings.
“We are the humans. We are teaching the robots what needs to be done”
Sneha Jegadish records housework
Sneha Jegadish, a 24-year-old, records housework for $2.60 an hour using a GoPro.
“My mother had to show me how to do those jobs”
Kannagi Periyasaamy trains robots
Kannagi Periyasaamy, a 42-year-old textile worker, records aprons for AI robot training.
“I'm proud I can teach it to do a good job”
Robots could replace workers
AI robots could take over textile and domestic jobs, leaving workers to seek new roles.
“The work we are doing now is going to be done by robots in the future”
Power costs limit robots
AI robots are expensive to run in India due to unreliable and costly electricity.
“We may be able to make the robots, but they're bloody expensive to run”
Ravi Shankar opposes robot deployment
Ravi Shankar, CEO of Objectways, says AI robots will be more expensive than human labor.
“I don't think it's going to be cheaper”
Workers hope for robot jobs
Workers like Periyasaamy hope robots will take over their jobs and they can switch to farming.
“I'm thinking about taking up farming”
AI training data challenges
AI robots need millions of hours of human recordings to learn tasks like folding towels and unpacking bags.
“The robot needs to learn what is [a] water bottle”
Robots could replace jobs
AI robots could replace textile and domestic jobs, leaving workers to find new roles.
“The work we are doing now is going to be done by robots in the future”
The headline
Indian textile workers record themselves using GoPros to train AI robots that could take their jobs.
