This month, we enter the season of Goodwill to All Men (and Women). But there is a bitter irony. What will actually make the world go round this holiday season is not simply the labour of real-life women and men – but the silent actions and communications of millions, if not zillions, of interconnected machines.
Think about it. If you travel this holiday via airports or train stations, you will invariably be clutching tickets with electronic barcodes, which will be waved at automatic turnstiles or check-in desks – which will duly send signals to other machines. If you buy a holiday gift or groceries, you will wave more barcodes – and probably swipe credit cards too; hence more silent electronic communication.
And as turkeys or toys fly off retail shelves, messages will be sent on electronic systems that will communicate with supply depots, warehouses and transport groups across the world, to create a seamless supply chain. Almost any action you take today, in other words, involves an interconnected digital machine. One might almost call these machines the third great sex: in the labour market now, it is not simply a question of men versus women, but men, women – and machines.