Universal basic income has support from the tech industry

One of Silicon Valley's favorite ideas isn't actually tech-driven: Universal Basic Income (UBI) is the tech industry's solution to a predicted wave of unemployment caused by the rise of artificial intelligence. NPR “That's why OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has spent the past few years funding experiments that give people free money. “Are people just sitting around playing video games, or are they building something new?” he asked in a blog post. Now we have some answers.

New results from the Unconditional Income Study show that giving people in Illinois and Texas $1,000 a month “increased fiscal flexibility without discouraging labor force participation.” Fast Company Recipients had a safety net and still wanted to work, albeit slightly less.But skepticism lingers. “There's a persistent myth that cash with no strings attached encourages laziness,” says Juliana Uhuru Bidadanure of New York University.

The Altman-funded experience was a reminder that “money can buy happiness,” said The Register's Brandon Vigliarolo, who covers the tech industry. Cash recipients “were more likely to go to the doctor, see a specialist, go to the dentist, and reduce alcohol and drug overdose.” They were also 10% more likely to actively look for work than those who didn't receive a UBI. That's good news. The bad news, at least for employers, is that cash recipients “were less likely to apply for jobs they didn't want.”

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Giving Americans $1,000 a month is “better than nothing,” Lucas Ropek said in Gizmodo. But the study showed it wasn't enough to “dramatically change a person's economic outlook.” One finding was that the cash “had little effect” on the physical health of cash recipients. It certainly helped these people meet their “most basic needs, like buying groceries and paying rent.” And while it made some recipients dream of starting their own businesses, few actually did. The bottom line? “Solving poverty is not a quick or easy process.”

Silicon Valley's support for a UBI is premised on the notion of AI-induced unemployment, but that support may fade “if there's no wave of AI-induced unemployment and the AI bubble bursts,” Oshan Jallow told Vox. There are also compelling arguments in favor of universal basic income that have nothing to do with tech industry predictions: “unconditional cash can be an effective anti-poverty measure.” That's why UBI advocates “might be better off severing all ties to AI speculation.”

Some observers are skeptical of the tech industry's motives, according to The New York Times. “Is Silicon Valley pushing basic income as a way to shrink the state? To replace all other safety nets?” asked Bida Danure, former director of Stanford University's Basic Income Institute. Others believe the industry has a responsibility to use its wealth for better things. “Silicon Valley is great at building products and companies and employing lots of people,” Salesforce's Marc Benioff said. “But it has a long way to go to be socially responsible.”

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