> When you know you're essentially babysitting the workhorse to ensure it doesn't go off the rails

I don't have data to support this (other than, I guess, my LinkedIn feed), but my impression is that the management class is pushing AI _way_ harder than the worker / craftsperson class.

And if that's true, I think it's perhaps because it's something they understand: you tell AI to do something, and (with varying degrees of success and less complaining)... it does that thing.

To the extent that I've seen craftspeople adopt AI, it's been because they recognize its usefulness as a tool to further their craft. I don't meet many craftspeople that enjoy watching any[one|thing] do their work for them.

> I theorise that many social ills come from workers having less pride in their skills and achievements, and a greater sense of social alienation, due to automation.

Welcome comrade. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marx%27s_theory_of_alienation

I agree entirely. Even in an idealistic fully egalitarian post-scarcity society, to truly be happy I think most people would need to do work that they can feel a sense of accomplishment about. The problem is that work at most jobs is increasingly just toil. Any possibility to scrape some tiny flakes of satisfaction out of the toil gets removed, often for no good reason.

I'll be in my woodshop!

Are you a communist?

Follow up question: Are you aware of it?