Will AI free us from life’s tedious admin?

“Why do we need to work for five days a week?” The words, not of a grumbling slacker, but Eric Yuan, chief executive of Zoom, who earlier this month said that if “AI can make all of our lives better,” why not work “three days, four days a week”. Such claims for AI’s overhaul of our lives are hardly unusual. Techno-optimists are rather partial to a vision of a future with a four-day week, with more time for creativity and leisure (skirting the job apocalypse). So I was surprised by a debate a few months ago on the prospect of using technology for tasks such as sourcing a venue for a child’s birthday party, sending invitations to guests, and buying a cake, all with just a week to go. Some made important points about privacy and shonky tech, while others were more prosaic: what kind of dolt would hope to book a children’s party venue with only a week to go? However, most of the scorn was directed at the inhumanity of outsourcing such a personal matter. “Nothing says ‘I love you, my child,

“Why do we need to work for five days a week?” The words, not of a grumbling slacker, but Eric Yuan, chief executive of Zoom, who earlier this month said that if “AI can make all of our lives better,” why not work “three days, four days a week”. Such claims for AI’s overhaul of our lives are hardly unusual. Techno-optimists are rather partial to a vision of a future with a four-day week, with more time for creativity and leisure (skirting the job apocalypse). So I was surprised by a debate a few months ago on the prospect of using technology for tasks such as sourcing a venue for a child’s bir