SustAInability: How A.I. can steal our jobs but save our planet

By Dr Chrysostomos Apostolidis, January 2024

Dr Chrysostomos Apostolidis, Associate Professor in Marketing, weighs up the sustainability-related promises of artificial intelligence (AI) with its societal impact.   

Almost a decade ago, the above quote from the infamous, quirky and swashbuckling Pirate of the Caribbean, was used to summarise my first thoughts on how digital transformation and sustainable development aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive – but we need to change our attitude towards how one can help us achieve the other. Although a lot has changed since then, recent developments have proven those words right. From the emergence of cryptos promising to democratise and decentralise financial systems, but currently being recognised as one of the main currencies to access drugs, illegal services and fund criminal and terrorist groups, to the metaverse preaching accessibility and empowerment opportunities for users, but eventually being criticised as a fruitful platform for money launderers and financial scammers.  

More recently, AI technologies took centre stage in the 'technology for sustainability' discussions, with advocates of both sides, for and against, arguing the potential impact of AI on the sustainability of organisations, communities, and the society as a whole.   

AI sceptics associate the development and adoption of AI solutions with issues relating to technical challenges such as concerns about data privacy and bias in AI algorithms, but also managerial and social challenges like job displacement and unemployment due to automation. It’s true that for many years, we’ve been hearing about robots that might take over our jobs in the future. According to experts in the field, this time is now, as increasing adoption of AI is associated with an imminent threat of job displacement (more so in some industries than others). AI algorithms can be used to automate certain tasks and processes that are currently performed by human workers, such as data entry and processing, customer service, and automated decision-making. Although this can lead to improved productivity, efficiency and waste reduction for organisations, it can also reduce the need for human workers to perform these tasks, leading to job losses. According to various consultancy and investment giants such as PwC, Goldman Sachs and McKinsey, up to 30% of jobs in the UK could be affected by AI within the next two decades, and that’s based on the capabilities of the technology as we know it today! In the current climate of cost-of-living crises and soaring unemployment, particularly for low-educated workers, marginalised communities and disadvantaged young people, this can lead to a series of social issues including disempowerment, increasing inequalities and diminishing quality of life for large parts of our society.   

On the other hand, AI proponents argue that the ability of AI technologies to process vast amounts of data, and identify trends, insights and solutions quickly and accurately can be particularly valuable for sustainability-related decisions, where data can be complex and extensive. Therefore, they can help the development of more sustainable solutions for complex problems, including more responsible resource allocation, waste reduction and efficiency optimisation. Furthermore, the use of predictive AI can help forecasting the environmental, social, and economic impacts of strategies and policies more accurately and objectively, as it’s not influenced by emotions, personal and professional biases, or political agendas. For example, AI can optimise energy usage in communities by predicting energy demand, identifying sources of waste and improving the efficiency of buildings and processes. More recently, discussions on how AI can support efforts to reduce social inequalities included its role in equal and inclusive access to education and healthcare and the potential to help local governments and organisations provide better support to vulnerable populations, such as disaster management, response and social services for at-risk individuals.  

This digital transformation conundrum leads to a series of pertinent (and to an extent philosophical) questions that’ll only become more pressing in the future. With the environmental ‘sword of Damocles’ hanging over our heads, can we really afford not to use such a powerful tool in our arsenal to avoid an imminent and irreversible environmental catastrophe? On the other hand, what’s the purpose of people fighting to create a better world, if they (and future generations) can’t afford to live in it? Increasingly, voices have been calling for more responsible development and adoption of AI, and regulations that’ll enable businesses, organisations and communities to harness the benefits of AI while mitigating its risks.  

This has been the focus of our research over the past decade, where we argue that despite the focus on the development of more ‘sustainable’ and ‘responsible’ digital tools and platforms, technology isn’t a cure-all for all sustainability illnesses. The same technologies that can be used to support more efficient and sustainable systems can lead to increased inequalities, job displacement and negatively affect social and environmental sustainability. Through our research, we advocate that a holistic and comprehensive approach to AI adoption is required to achieve the sustainability benefits we strive for. Currently however, organisations are predominantly preoccupied with the various ways that AI technologies can be incorporated in their operations to improve efficiency and reduce costs, but pay less attention on preparing themselves (and their employees) for this digital transformation, so they could make the most out of this powerful technology. In our studies, we move the discussion beyond the ‘traditional’ capabilities and resources view of technology adoption, and we ask one of the most pertinent questions around AI readiness, namely: Is your organisation ready to leverage your human resources and strategically introduce AI to increase the benefit it can offer to your organisation, your customers, your investors and society now and in the long term? 

Through a series of studies, we developed and tested our 4S framework (Figure 1), a model taking into consideration internal and external drivers, stakeholders, resources and value to provide a guide for organisations striving to successfully adopt and implement technologies to improve social, environmental and economic sustainability. 

We argue that a gradual shift of our existing attitudes towards AI is required, from “How can we fit AI in our operations?” to “How can we prepare ourselves to make the most out of AI?”. By following this process, organisations will find it easier to focus not only on the creation of short-term profit but also ‘sustainable value’ and realise the important role of employees in maximising the benefits that AI can offer to the organisation and sustainability. We also support that it’s the right time for policy makers and regulators to shift their focus to regulating for (instead of regulating against) AI developments. This will allow them to stay ahead of the technology development curve and prepare the environment for more meaningful adoption of such technologies when the opportunity arises, so mistakes of the past (see cryptocurrencies and metaverse) aren’t repeated again. Or in the words of Captain Jack: “If you were waiting for the opportune moment, that was it.”