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Axios hosts a conversation on the future of work at Ohio State University featuring Ohio Governor John Kasich and entrepreneur Mark Cuban.

John Kasich, Mark Cuban speak with Axios at Ohio State

Axios hosts a conversation on the future of work at Ohio State University

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<p>Axios hosts a conversation on the future of work at Ohio State University featuring Ohio Governor John Kasich and entrepreneur Mark Cuban.</p>

Live from NYC, join us for a conversation with leading entrepreneurial voices on the workforce revolution, featuring 2-time NBA champion Draymond Green.

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<p>Live from NYC, join us for a conversation with leading entrepreneurial voices on the workforce revolution, featuring 2-time NBA champion Draymond Green.</p><div><div class="iframe-responsive-wrapper"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameBorder="0" height="270" scrolling="auto" src="https://content.jwplatform.com/previews/vzkoY8WB-AeXnLRNE" title="Entrepreneurship and the Future of Work" width="480"></iframe></div><div style="display:none"></div></div><span id="midStoryAd" data-ad-status="NO_AD_LENGTH"></span>

Shifts in technology and media are changing the way we play, watch and understand sports. Business models are adapting and social change is forcing those in charge of teams and leagues to reconsider decades-old practices.

Sports

Truck drivers will be some of the first people to lose jobs as automation technology spreads.

A push by companies like Uber to automate heavy trucks through a combination of artificial intelligence and robotics raises questions for millions of drivers brought into the profession by the promise of a steady job. Will they be employed behind the wheel five years from now? Or will robots be doing it instead?

And if you think this is a niche problem, think again. The impact of self-driving trucks would be felt in communities around the country — especially Trump country.

It could start with 'platooning:' One entry point to significant truck automation could be to have a second, autonomous truck travel behind a lead truck driven by a human — a concept known as platooning.

Long-haul goes first: Drivers who only cover short distances might be safe for now. "You're not going to have a robot that can sort of get out of the back of the truck and unload things and all that stuff, or back the truck up into a little zone," said Information Technology and Innovation Foundation President Rob Atkinson, "That's just really, really hard to do." But it's easier for automated trucks to drive along highways for hours.

The change starts with an individual company or technology: It could be that the first round of major automation is prompted by a single company — think Walmart — adopting the tech en masse, according to Kristin Sharp, the executive director of the New America Foundation and Bloomberg's Shift Commission on the Future of Work, Workers and Technology. Or certain types of trucks could be automated first to test the waters. Sharp described this as a "key question" on the issue.

Why truck drivers may not need to panic just yet:

The shift won't happen overnight: "Issues around regulation and the business model" will delay full automation even after the technology is ready, said Princeton professor Ed Felten, who worked on this issue while serving as Deputy U.S. Chief Technology Officer in the Obama White House. Automaker Daimler, for example, estimated in 2015 that it could take 10 years to bring truck automation technology to market.

The technology could make jobs easier, rather than kill them: "I think technology will assist in our jobs; I don't think technology will take over our jobs," said a driver named Brian during a focus group conducted by the Shift Commission, according to a transcript.

Automation could create new opportunities: For example, mechanics may find jobs servicing trucks that run for longer periods of time and over longer distances when the vehicles are no longer limited by the range of a human driver.

The developers: Uber-owned Otto is creating kits to retrofit trucks for automation. It recently made its first shipment, over 120 miles. Peloton Technologies is a startup working on platooning technology. And it's not just upstart companies. Volvo showed a concept truck last year that could be used in mines, while Daimler has tested self-driving trucks in both the United States and Europe.

The carriers: The industry generated more than $700 billion in freight revenue in 2015, according to the American Trucking Association. The trade association has said it doesn't expect drivers to be entirely replaced by automation. "What we're really talking about is not displacing drivers: I think you're always going to need drivers in trucks in the cityscapes to do the pickups and deliveries," said its president, Chris Spears.

The drivers: The Teamsters, the labor union that represents almost 100,000 people in the trucking sector, has pushed the importance of human drivers for safety reasons. Sam Loesche, a government affairs representative for the union, said the organization thinks policymakers "need to understand that this is a monster industry and the livelihoods of millions of workers need to be taken into account at all times."

What the industry can do about it: Companies that know they will play a role in automation could identify cities that will experience significant displacement and focus a response there, such as programs to retrain workers, said Sharp.

What government could do about it: Government could help fund training programs to help drivers transition to other jobs or take on new roles in a more-automated trucking industry. The issue is on the radar of federal lawmakers. Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John Thune told Axios last week that policymakers "ought to take into consideration, figure out and plan in advance knowing full well that there are going to be some potential impacts on the labor market if this technology becomes fully operational and fielded."

The bottom line: Automation is a fact of life across the economy: ATMs replaced bank tellers, switchboards replaced telephone operators and industrial robots have become fixtures in factories. The trucking industry's transformation is coming, and drivers around the country will have to grapple with what it means for their futures.

Here's where jobs will be lost when robots drive trucks

The impact of self-driving trucks would be felt in communities around the country — especially Trump country.

Future

Deep Dive - Robot Revolution

Technology

Automation and AI

<p>Truck drivers will be some of the first people to lose jobs as automation technology spreads.</p><p>A push by companies like Uber to automate heavy trucks through a combination of artificial intelligence and robotics raises questions for millions of drivers brought into the profession by the promise of a steady job. Will they be employed behind the wheel five years from now? Or will robots be doing it instead?</p><p>And if you think this is a niche problem, think again. The impact of self-driving trucks would be felt in communities around the country — especially Trump country.</p><div><figure><div id="av-2017-02-21-trucking-jobs-choropleth" style="max-width:100%"><img alt="" class="axios-visual-newsletter-fallback-image"/><img alt="" class="axios-visual-apple-fallback-image"/></div></figure><div style="display:none"></div></div><p>Data: <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Bureau of Labor Statistics" data-vars-click-url="https://data.bls.gov/cew/apps/table_maker/v4/table_maker.htm#type=1&amp;year=2016&amp;qtr=2&amp;own=5&amp;ind=484&amp;supp=0" data-vars-content-id="58297c36-0cfb-4675-b3cd-9454d932ebbb" data-vars-headline="Here&#x27;s where jobs will be lost when robots drive trucks" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://data.bls.gov/cew/apps/table_maker/v4/table_maker.htm#type=1&amp;year=2016&amp;qtr=2&amp;own=5&amp;ind=484&amp;supp=0" target="_blank">Bureau of Labor Statistics</a></p>

After a record economic expansion, the coronavirus pandemic sent the U.S. economy into a recession as unemployment soared to staggering heights. The country now faces urgent questions about how much stimulus is needed for reeling consumers and businesses, and what a recovery might look like.

Economy & Business

From the Valley to D.C., Big Tech players like Facebook, Google and Amazon are under more scrutiny than ever as new technology develops and privacy and antitrust concerns grow in lockstep with companies’ ambitions.

Data: Associated Press; Chart: Axios Visuals

Mississippi voters will fill the remaining vacant Senate seat Tuesday in a runoff between Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith and her Democratic challenger, Mike Espy. The race went to a runoff when neither candidate managed to reach 50 percent on November 6th.

The big picture: Hyde-Smith would be the first woman elected to represent the state in Congress but has only a slight lead. Espy would be Mississippi's first African-American senator since Reconstruction. The winner will serve the remaining two years of Senator Thad Cochran’s term and have to run again in 2020.

Mississippi Senate runoff: live results

It's the race between Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith and her Democratic challenger, Mike Espy.

2018 midterm elections

<p>Mississippi voters will fill the remaining vacant Senate seat Tuesday in a runoff between Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith and her Democratic challenger, Mike Espy. The race went to a runoff when neither candidate managed to reach 50 percent on <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="November 6th" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/live-map-axios-2018-midterm-elections-results-e54da558-b5e9-4b09-ad1e-5663cc78f1b7.html" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/live-map-axios-2018-midterm-elections-results-e54da558-b5e9-4b09-ad1e-5663cc78f1b7.html" target="_self">November 6th</a>.</p><p><strong>The big picture: </strong>Hyde-Smith would be the first woman elected to represent the state in Congress but <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="has only a slight lead" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2018-midterm-elections-mississippi-special-senate-ee35e6e4-1914-4f71-bf92-07424b3260aa.html" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2018-midterm-elections-mississippi-special-senate-ee35e6e4-1914-4f71-bf92-07424b3260aa.html" target="_self">has only a slight lead</a>. Espy would be Mississippi&#x27;s first African-American senator since Reconstruction. The winner will serve the remaining two years of Senator Thad Cochran’s term and have to run again in 2020.</p>

President Biden has made the COVID-19 crisis and a post-Trump return to national unity and traditional democratic ideals his top priorities. From vaccinations to stimulus to schools, Biden is seeking bipartisan compromise while showing a willingness to use executive authority and bare Democratic majorities in the U.S. House and Senate to implement his policies. Republican leaders are navigating deep party divisions over if and how to move beyond former President Trump.

Politics & Policy

Any search engine can quickly reveal your phone number, address and family information with a surprising level of detail.

It can be instantly culled on the open web from sites like White Pages and Spokeo.

Why it matters: This information, combined with social media posts, can be used by anyone to intimidate, harass, or stalk high-visibility people like politicians, business leaders, celebrities and journalists. 

And it's getting easier for trolls to find specific information about all of us as we go about our daily lives.

The big picture: Finding personal information online is relatively easy; removing all of it is nearly impossible. 

However, going through smart opt-out processes can reduce your online footprint, making it more difficult for malicious actors to target you.

Go to one of the lists of people aggregator sites, like the one provided by IntelTechniques, and go through the opt-out steps. 

Don't provide any additional, optional, or new information like a driver's license or phone number, and consider making a burner email just to receive opt-out confirmations.

Opting out of all of them is harder than unsubscribing from an email. So aim for reducing the amount of information available, rather than attempting to go completely off the grid.

IntelTechnique’s full list of people finder sites with associated opt-out steps.

The New York Times information security team has a tip sheet, including links to some of the largest people finder sites that regularly appear in search results.

The Privacy Rights Clearinghouse also provides a consumer guide detailing the specifics of government records and public versus private information.

Not every site contains the same detailed information. But a quick search can reveal more information about you than you’re comfortable sharing — like:

Court records (like marriage, divorce, or arrest records).

Relatives (based on shared last names) and their info.

Roommates (based on shared addresses) and their info.

Additional information from data breaches. Check your address here.

How it works: There are more than a dozen people-finder sites that act as data brokers, vacuuming up public and private records, like court and motor vehicle records, or the Postal Service change of address database.

These sites can glean information from subscriptions to magazines or groups and brands you’ve engaged with on social media.

In addition to the larger companies, between 100 and 200 smaller ones scrape that data from more prominent people finder sites.

The backstory: People-finder sites, which have been publicly available since the 1990s, make money various way: ads, subscribers and wholesale data brokerage. 

They operate in a shadowy legal area similar to credit reporting agencies, but without as much regulation. 

A rare limit is on  marketing information to employers or recruiters.

The bottom line: These sites don’t necessarily delete your records from their database if you opt out. But they can make you a more difficult target for people to quickly pinpoint. 

Most opt-out processes take about a few days to a few weeks. Then, after about a month, you should see your information disappear from the first few pages of search results.

What the internet knows about you

Removing all of it is nearly impossible, but there are things you can do to reduce your online footprint.

Animated illustration of a desktop, with a mouse clicking on a folder marked "You" and opening a lot of personal information

What companies know about you

Series / What they know about you

Data privacy

<p><strong>Any search engine</strong> can quickly reveal your phone number, address and family information with a surprising level of detail.</p><ul><li><strong>It can be instantly culled</strong> on the open web from sites like White Pages and Spokeo.</li></ul><p><strong>Why it matters:</strong> This information, combined with social media posts, can be used by anyone to intimidate, harass, or stalk high-visibility people like politicians, business leaders, celebrities and journalists. </p>

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What the internet knows about you

Mississippi Senate runoff: live results

Here's where jobs will be lost when robots drive trucks

John Kasich, Mark Cuban speak with Axios at Ohio State

Livestream: Entrepreneurship and the future of work