The impact of the digital revolution on the substitution of labour with capital

Abstract

Subject. Throughout human history, the development of new technologies has led to an increase in the efficiency of labour, changed its nature and influenced the socio-economic life of people. Currently, the process of the digitalisation of the economy, as well as the distribution of robotics and artificial intelligence technologies, increase interest in scientific research aimed at assessing the impact of these technologies on labour and productivity.Purposes. The purpose of this article was the analysis of the impact of modern technological innovation on labour demand at the macroeconomic level. To achieve these, we considered two key issues: what is the impact of the introduction of new technologies on overall demand and what impact does the integration of new technologies have on the economy.Methodology. In order to achieve the objectives, an analysis of domestic and foreign research in this area was carried out, and approaches to statistical testing of the hypotheses were discussed. General scientific methods were used: analysis, synthesis, comparison, systematisation.Conclusions. Two main approaches to forecasting the impact of new technologies on the labour market have been identified: the capital-labour hypothesis (techno-optimists) and an increase of the technological demand hypothesis (techno-sceptics). It was revealed that statistical testing of the impact of new technologies on aggregate labour demand is not available due to data limitations. It was also noted that these two approaches apply to different time perspectives and are not mutually exclusive. It was found that there are conflicting views on the expected consequences of new technologies for the labour market. Some people believe that technologies will increase skill and income inequality, while others predict that it will reduce inequality and make the digital economy accessible to people with different skills.