"A silent crisis is shaking the very foundations of modern society. The industrial workforce responsible for building the global economy is at risk of crumbling. The people charged with keeping our power grids online, factories humming, utilities reliable, and supply chains moving uninterrupted are retiring at a fast clip. Sure, this may seem like the natural cycle of things as mass retirement opens the door to at least 3.8 million jobs."
"But it hides a deeply troubling reality: tacit knowledge, along with practical skills refined over decades of hands-on work, is at risk of leaving with them. While technologies from artificial intelligence to robotics to computer vision are transforming industrial operations, we're dangerously close as a society to losing the ability to diagnose a failing motor by sound, read analog engineering drawings, or understand the quirks of a 60-year-old machine that predates Disco."
A silent crisis threatens modern society as experienced industrial workers retire rapidly, creating at least 3.8 million open positions. Tacit knowledge and practical skills developed over decades risk disappearing with retirees, undermining the ability to diagnose machinery, read analog drawings, and manage aged equipment. Advanced technologies such as AI, robotics, and computer vision are transforming operations, yet they cannot fully replace hands-on, system-level understanding. Generative AI makes information feel immediately available but raises questions about relying on software without deep domain expertise. Investing in AI should focus on preserving earned knowledge, training workers to use AI responsibly, and sustaining critical infrastructure reliability.
Read at Fortune
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