Great article that discusses how the cost of robotic manufacturing, is coming very close to that of using people. And this is also happening in China, where Foxconn, the assembler of the Apple iPhone is going to install more than a million robots in China.

Interesting question, since Foxconn is China's largest employer, what happens when they employ less people? There will be more jobs for higher educated workers.

And yes, I remember the big push 20 years ago with GM and robotics, that was a disaster and actually increased cost. The problem with robots, is they are not suited for all jobs and need to be used for the right type of jobs. In the last 20 years, there have been huge advances in robots which has enabled them to do more delicate work. I would not be surprised if soon, they can even debone chickens, which is done manually currently since each chicken is a bit different.

Skilled Work, Without the Worker - NY Times

Labels: made in china, robots