Today, we’re diving into the concept of the **automation cliff**, a topic I’ve talked about before but wanted to explore in more depth. This idea isn’t mine originally, but I’ll be sharing my personal experiences along with research and projections. The basic idea is that industries approach automation in one of two ways – a gradual **stair-step** approach or a sudden **drop-off** where human involvement disappears almost instantly. I’ll break down why full automation can be superior, how **drop-in technologies** accelerate adoption, and why many industries are still struggling with the last-mile problem of automation. 

We’ll also look at how **humanoid robots** and **computer-using agents** are about to reshape everything. With companies already deploying AI agents for knowledge work and robots being trained for real-world tasks, we are heading for a massive shift. I’ve put together a timeline of how fast this could happen, based on past adoption curves for things like virtualization and cloud computing. My prediction? Seven years until widespread AI-driven automation takes over most industries. The AI I consulted gave a more conservative estimate, but I’ll explain why I think it’s way too slow. If you’re interested in where automation is headed, what jobs are at risk, and how this could completely change the way society functions, stick around – there’s a lot to unpack. Let’s get into it!

If you liked this episode, Follow the podcast to keep up with the AI Masterclass. Turn on the notifications for the latest developments in AI. Find David Shapiro on: Patreon: https://patreon.com/daveshap (Discord via Patreon) Substack: https://daveshap.substack.com (Free Mailing List) LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/dave shap automator GitHub: https://github.com/daveshap

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