What is Neo-Luddism, the growing anti-technology movement?

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What is Neo-Luddism? The growing anti-technology movement.
Thanks for asking.
In today's ultra-connected society, more and more technologies are emerging all the time, and they're getting increasingly advanced. Just look at how far AI has come in recent times, and the attention it's been getting since the launch of ChatGPT. Children are also using technology earlier than ever before. For example, a 2022 Pew Research Center survey found that 95% of 13-17 year olds in the USA have access to a smartphone. In many ways, it's difficult to not use technology. It will be a bit like cutting ourselves off from the rest of the world, but still it's not to everyone's liking. Some people resent and reject the influence that some forms of technology have on our society. They're known as neo-luddites.
Where does the name come from? The Industrial Revolution began in the United Kingdom in the second half of the 18th century. Goods started to be mass produced in factories through the use of machines. Mechanized looms and knitting frames gradually started replacing human weavers and textile workers. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the workers weren't thrilled about having their livelihoods taken away. In the 1810s, a group known as the Luddites began a valiant, coordinated campaign of machine smashing in an attempt to protect the jobs of skilled workers. They were named after their figurehead, Ned Ludd, who may or may not have actually existed. The Luddites were ultimately unsuccessful with the British government suppressing their activity and temporarily making machine breaking a capital offence. But their legacy lived on. Fast forward to the 1990s and American activist, Cellist Glendening sought to revive the term. She published a 1500 word paper entitled Notes Toward a Neo-Luddite Manifesto in quarterly journal, The Utne Reader. Glendening pulled no punches in calling into question the view that unbridled technology represents progress. She argued that certain destructive technologies should be dismantled like nuclear technologies, chemical technologies and the television. Still, to this day, though, Neo-Luddism is more a school of thought than an organized activist movement. Certain actions like burning 5G mobile towers could be referred to as Neo-Luddite, and conferences do take place occasionally, but there's no real structure or leader.
Could AI have the same impact as machines did during the Industrial Revolution? AI is likely to drive certain jobs to extinction with time, but there will still be plenty of opportunities for skilled human workers who can perform tasks that are beyond machines or complement them. That said, as American economist Harry J. Holzer noted, writing for the Brookings Journal in January 2022, generally speaking, automation shifts compensation from workers to business owners who gain higher profits with less need for labor. So it's no wonder people are feeling uneasy about AI and how it could affect their long-term career prospects. There's an argument to be made that it could do more harm than good for average people and widen inequalities between rich and poor.
There you have it.
Now you know what neo-Luddism is. In under three minutes, we answer your questions and help you understand the true meaning behind the trends, concepts and acronyms that are making headlines. Listen along and you will really know it for sure.