Erika Debrah Reed

A strategist for one of the world’s largest retail organizations, predicting the future of commerce and deeply understanding human behavior. She operates at the intersection of commercial real estate and transportation engineering. In addition, Erika is an advisor to premiere venture capital firms.

Erika holds a BS in Civil Engineering from Bucknell University, MEM from Northwestern University’s McCormick School of Engineering, and MBA from the Kellogg School of Management.

I love the premise of this book: What if AI could give us back 1,000 hours a year? That sounds incredible, but here's the bigger question: What are we going to do with all that time? What do you hope people choose to do with it?

Depends on how the individual measures the subjective value of time based on achievement, joy and meaningfulness. Everyone is different and everyone has different circumstances. People who value achievement more may work more. People who value joy may spend more time with family, participating in a sport, mastering a hobby, etc. People who value meaningfulness more may seek civic participation, volunteerism, etc. Measuring the Subjective Value of Your Time: New Research From MIT Sloan Management Review 

Everyone seems to be talking about what AI is going to take away from us, especially our jobs. You're asking us to look at what AI might give us instead. Why did you feel it was important to change that conversation?

The current rhetoric from industry leaders, media, and experts is causing fear and anxiety. This is leading to unnecessary stress to the individual. Jobs will transform but not be replaced. Also, most people don't realize the benefits of autonomous mobility. Transportation underpins the economy when transportation is more efficient the cost of the movement of goods goes down. In addition, it frees dead time commuting to time where someone can do something else more constructive and meaningful (e.g. rest, spend time with family, reading, etc.) 

You talk about something called the “Auto-Robotics Nexus,” where AI and robotics begin taking over both the mental and physical tasks we don't necessarily need to do ourselves. What could that actually look like in our everyday lives? Are we talking about a completely different way of living and working?

Yes I believe this will change institutions, industries, and everyday lives. I believe AI and robotics will bring us closer to home where goods are made and circulated densely within communities. There will be a contraction of globalization. Consequently, there will be an explosion of small businesses. For some industries, working will be based on outcomes not attendance hence a shorter workweek.Some institutions will be needed less (e.g. four-year colleges, nursing homes, etc). AI and robotics will provide a form of lived freedom for humans outside of institutions that was not possible before. It'll also be more cost effective. For instance, healthcare and colleges are too expensive so the current systems are no longer viable and need to change. I believe personalized medicine will be a game changer. If diseases can be prevented and cured, my hope is that everyone is living healthy, active lives. 

Here's something I kept thinking about: So much of our identity is tied to what we do. We meet someone and almost immediately ask, “What do you do?” If AI changes the role work plays in our lives, could it also force us to rethink who we are?

​Individuals will become masters of their individual artistry not servants to an industry or company. People will reclaim their individual identity and dignity. 

You also warn about an “Autonomous Divide.” Is there a real danger that we're going to end up with two groups of people: those who know how to use AI and benefit from it, and those who don't? How quickly could that divide happen?

Yes. Those who choose to not use AI not only lose benefits but they don't help to shape the AI models that are foundational to society. AI literacy and reskilling is important. Autonomous Divide can be mended with thoughtful actions by individuals, corporations and the government. We must recognize which job positions are going away and which ones are transforming and consciously create policies to make the transition smoother. Developing countries may experience a wider autonomous divide and it could happen quickly causing women's rights to be under threat because of lack of economic empowerment.

One of the ideas I found fascinating is that AI might actually bring us back to things that feel very human: craftsmanship, skilled trades, small businesses, creating things with our hands. How does this incredibly advanced technology potentially bring us back to something more personal and local?

In a sense we had to become machines to create the machines. It wasn't entirely natural for most people sitting in front of a computer all day long. Once AI is able to do repetitive tasks, we can spend more time being human. The world is always trying to balance itself. The more machines do tasks the more people will gravitate to human-made goods and physical experiences.Some people may frame this as a rebellion to AI but it's not. It's a rebalancing. 

We're already obsessed with productivity. If AI gives us three extra hours, I'm afraid we're going to find three more hours of work to fill them! How do we stop ourselves from turning this extraordinary gift of time into simply another way to get more done?

Again this will be based on how people measure the subjective value of time. It was demonstrated by the five-day work week. When Henry Ford increased pay and reduced working hours, he monitored how employees adjusted to the change. He said they fell into 3 buckets. Some men got second jobs, some men squandered their pay and extra time, and others kept on living as they did and banked the extra pay and spent more time with family, etc. Also, the model T era was the birth of new industries in entertainment, tourism, and consumerism. I believe there will be new industries created. For instance, I spoke to a welding engineering student from The Ohio State and I asked him what he was going to do after college. He said that he was going to work for SpaceX and build hotels in space. Space tourism will be a growing industry.

Technology has been promising to save us time forever, and somehow we all seem busier than ever. Why do you believe AI could be different?

What has to change, not just technologically, but in us? People have to choose intentionality over productivity. Right now there is fragmentation of attention due to the numerous systems we have to engage with on a daily basis. I had a colleague say just this week that he had to download 8 apps for his child's school! One for lunch money, one for after school care, one for homework, etc. In the future, apps won't exist. We'll just interact with an AI so all the systems are consolidated in one experience. Some have called this ambient AI where AI is ingrained throughout our lived experience. What is ambient intelligence (AmI)? Definition from TechTarget

I want to make this personal. Did writing this book change the way you spend your own time? Was there anything you stopped doing, started doing, or simply began looking at differently because of what you discovered?

I choose to be an active participant in change instead of a passive observer so I can shape the future. I’m the author of my life, not AI. Many people are saying AI is diminishing their creativity, cognitive skills, work, relationships, etc. Humans do have a say in how they relate to AI. We're not powerless in this technological inflection point. AI cannot take away anyone’s agency unless you allow it to.  

Let's jump ahead ten years. AI has worked. It has actually made our lives better. What are we doing with our lives that we simply didn't have the time to do before?

My dream is that people have recovered intentionality, mastered their individual artistry, and experienced lived freedom that previous generations could scarcely imagine. 

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