Complexity may be double-edged sword

There does seem to be a trend to replace human interactions with automated AI systems. This is especially evident in the management of our tax system.

There was a time, many years ago, when each taxpayer’s tax affairs would be managed by a local tax inspector and all records were kept in paper format in a physically located paper-based filing system.

Now, all tax records are kept electronically. Unless your affairs are being formally investigated by HMRC – in which case a tax person may be making decisions – the only human interaction will be with a call centre operative, and it is unlikely that they will ever have seen your data prior to your call.

It is a small step from a call with a human being, to a desktop exchange with an AI system.

HMRC staff will consist of specialists who pursue tax avoiders, but even they will be prepped by AI data.

Automation is an efficient way to process huge volumes of data in double quick time. And the days of human involvement in that process are probably numbered.

Younger generations who are stepping into the world of work would be wise to consider how AI is likely to impact their chosen occupation. In the future, complexity may be the realm that quantum computers monopolise. Their inventors may need to sit back and witness the effects of their self-learning progenitors, and perhaps with some trepidation.