Chinese President Xi Jinping is sparing no effort in the AI race between China and the U.S. He desperately wants China to win that battle. Mr. Xi also seems to take great pride in China’s advanced technologies in robotics. During German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s visit to China earlier this year, he was entertained by AI-powered humanoid robots dancing, boxing, and performing kung fu.
I find Mr. Xi’s enthusiastic championing of humanoid robots surprising for two reasons. First, despite its economic miracle over the past three decades, China still has a massive unemployment problem due to its huge population. There are constant reports of millions of Chinese students graduating from the country’s universities and struggling to find jobs. The last thing those youngsters need is for them to be competing with robots for whatever scarce employment opportunities exist.
Perhaps one source of comfort is that it doesn’t appear as if all of the humanoid robots being produced in China are meant to be put to work on factory floors and in offices. The ones that performed for Chancellor Merz seemed to be just entertainers having a great time. Apparently, even in the world of robots, there are hierarchies. Some have to toil for a living, while others relax and have fun.
At this point, I don’t think anyone can say with any degree of certainty whether there will be anything close to the mass displacement of workers by robots that some people fear. But I think it is prudent for societies and their leaders to be thinking seriously about that possibility and preparing to respond appropriately if the need arose. The most common idea that I hear people talk about is for governments to design universal basic income (UBI) schemes to provide their citizens the resources they will need to sustain their lives if they cannot find paid employment.
The possibility of having to introduce a UBI in China is the second reason I find it odd that Mr. Xi is such a fan of humanoid robots. He is known to have a strong distaste for “welfarism” and “lazy people who get something for nothing.” I wonder if he would take a more sympathetic view if the state had to feed the do-nothing loafers because the robots have taken their jobs.
I have a hunch that Mr. Xi will be forced to make a choice sometime soon. He will either have to relax his antipathy toward laziness, or slow down China’s creation of humanoid robots. It will be interesting to see which way he leans.