"So welcome to the lovely new economy where being human actually matters."

 

"This is the new secret strategy in the arts, and it’s built on the simplest thing you can imagine -- namely, existing as a human being. ...

"You see the same thing in media right now, where livestreaming is taking off. ...

"This return to human contact is happening everywhere, not just media and the arts. ... I see it myself in store after store. People will wait in line for flesh-and-blood clerks, instead of checking out faster at the do-it-yourself counter.

"But this isn’t happenstance -- it’s a sign of the times....

"As AI customer service becomes more pervasive, the luxury brands will survive by offering this human touch. ...

"Even tech companies [like Spotify, Apple Music, Bandcamp, and QoBuz] are figuring this out. ...

"Welcome to the new world of flesh-and-blood concierges and curators. That’s now the ultimate status symbol. ... In fact, the Silicon Valley elites forcing tech down our throats will only make us hate cold, sterile tech more than ever. And they won’t fix that problem by training AI to pretend to be human. That just adds insult to injury.

"This might even be the hot new career path -- readymade for curators, concierges, caregivers, conversationalists, and other people who love people. As the old pop song anticipated, they might just end up being the happiest people of them all.

"So welcome to the lovely new economy where being human actually matters. Go ahead, try it out. Be cool -- be a human. All the bots in botdom will never be able to take that away from you."

~ Ted Gioia from his post 'The New Cool Thing: Being Human'