In the early 19th century the industrial revolution began to take hold. The world was on the cusp of a rapid transformation, and society shifted from a focus on agriculture to industry. Mechanization came about, and factory jobs became the norm. People traded their time for money, and were employed in mass to perform repetitive tasks on assembly lines.
The transition from a life of agriculture was unbearable for many. To help workers cope with the immense psychological and social upheaval enterprising businessmen set up gin carts across London and other industrial centers. Before, during, and after work employees of factories could numb themselves to the horribly boring and repetitive work.
For the past twenty years we’ve been at that start of the technological era. Now everyone has a super computer in their pocket. Exciting new technologies like AI and machine learning are starting to take hold, and are about to disrupt our economy and the way people live and work.
What will be the gin cart of our era? In an age where work is becoming increasingly automated what will help people cope with the transition from a worker dominated economy to a machine dominated one?