“On the Nature of Technology”, Swarajya, May 12, 2026

“There is a great deal of debate these days about the likely impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on the future of jobs, skills and education. The general tone of discussion is that AI will benefit the highly skilled and will leave the less skilled without jobs. While it is true that a new technology will benefit those who are specifically skilled in that particular technology, the impression being given is that AI will impact all sectors and leave behind the unskilled and less educated. But, what is the evidence for this?

This article makes the case that the global debate on AI and other emerging technologies is derived from a fundamental misunderstanding of the nature of technology and its impact on human civilization. Let us start with a very fundamental question: what does a technology do? A technology either makes it easier to do something that was earlier difficult or it enables an activity that was earlier not possible. Think of any technology and it will fit this general framework. 

Let us now look at the long history of technology and consider the implications of this framework. Take the example of hand-held firearms. Prior to the spread of guns, armies around the world primarily relied on archery for projectiles. When fire-arms first arrived at the end of the medieval period, they were less accurate, had less range and had a poor rate of fire. Indeed, it would not be till the Napoleonic Wars of the early nineteenth century that muskets significantly exceeded the range and accuracy of Mongol archery of the thirteenth century. It would be another half a century before they exceeded the rate of fire……..”

Read full article at swarajyamag.com