Robots may take over nearly half of all jobs in Japan by 2035, new research has found, with jobs as receptionists, taxi drivers, security guards, and the service industry particularly susceptible to being replaced by computer-controlled technology.
A report released on Wednesday by the Nomura Research Institute found that as much as 49 percent of the country’s jobs now performed by humans could be replaced by robots within the next 10 to 20 years.
That compares to 47 percent in the US and 35 percent in the UK. The reason for the discrepancy, lead researcher Yumi Wakao says, is because many data-inputting jobs that are still done by humans in Japan were now performed by robots in the UK.
But rather than sparking fears, especially among Japan’s fast-aging population, Ms. Wakao says the research is intended to show that robots could focus on jobs involving more repetitive tasks, while freeing up more space for humans to do jobs that require creativity, compassion, and analyzing abstract thoughts, which robots would have difficulty performing.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member