MOSCOW, December 19Loaders, couriers and taxi drivers topped the list of professions that, according to Russian experts, could be replaced by robots in the future, according to a joint study by the Digital Transport and Logistics Association, the National Union of Experts in Transport and Logistics and the Consortium of Robotics and Intelligent Control Systems which is available.
“»Almost half of the respondents (experts — ed.), 49%, believe that loaders can eventually be replaced by robotics. Human couriers can be completely replaced by drones or rovers, another 33% of respondents are sure. Replacement Another 24% of respondents expect taxi drivers and drivers to have automatic control, and another 20% are confident that it will be possible to replace cargo taxi drivers,” the study says.
Experts least expect robots to replace flight attendants, ship mechanics, ship cooks and railway linemen — these options received less than 20% of the votes. At the same time, a fairly large percentage of respondents — 41% — are confident that robots will not be able to replace people.
As Evgeniy Dudorov, Chairman of the Board of the Consortium and Executive Director of the NPO Android Technology, noted, it is convenient for robots to delegate typical and monotonous work. For example, the development of robotics will change freight transportation. “Unmanned trucks are already driving on the M-11 highway as part of an experiment — their use has already helped reduce the cost of cargo transportation on long routes. Again, it is worth developing this area for delivering goods to the North — the robot does not need a salary, it doesn’t care where to go.” , — said the expert.
He noted that robocouriers and robotaxis are already being used in the city and suburbs, but this technology still needs to be worked out and only then scaled up. “As for the replacement of flight attendants, mechanics and cooks on ships with robots, they will definitely not be replaced by anyone for the next 20-30 years. Service robots, including on railway tracks, on the contrary, will be very useful. Linemen, re-hitters, and so on.” , — added Dudorov.
According to Polina Davydova, director of the Digital Transport and Logistics Association, what is important is not the fact of replacing specialists, but the timing. “I believe that there is no need to worry in the near future. The introduction of robots in the transport industry will occur based on two main factors: firstly, the economic efficiency of replacing employees with robotics, and secondly, the complexity of the robotic system and the complexity of incoming information and its processing compared to human work,” she noted.