Domestically, automation is often viewed with trepidation for its potential to kill jobs and bring on social unrest. But when you are talking tech competition among nations, political leaders suddenly become nationalists. Right now, the latter is the commanding position.
What's going on: Trump has made a policy cornerstone out of his trade war with China, elevating the automation-breeds-competitiveness argument. Companies could be propelled toward faster automation and accelerate a coming topsy-turvy future of work.
Much of the discussion around the future of work focuses on what is already disappearing: jobs in factories, on farms, and in restaurants.
But coming automation-fueled job losses and changes will reverberate far beyond — and eventually reach seemingly safe workers in Silicon Valley and on Wall Street.
If you're an optimist about the robotic future, you likely hear talk that we're all going to lose our jobs or suffer a big pay cut, and tell friends to relax — the new technology revolution is going to turn out like all the others since the dawn of the Industrial Age.
But if history is your best hope, you should probably think again: The pessimists have a strong case.
Dan and Axios tech reporter David McCabe discuss venture capitalist Peter Thiel's attacks on Google, just days after a White House airing of grievances over perceived social media bias.
News that Facebook reached a $5 billion settlement with the Federal Trade Commission had critics fuming and Facebook shareholders breathing a sigh of relief.
Driving the news: The New York Times and the Wall Street Journal both reported on Friday afternoon that the FTC had voted 3-2 along party lines to approve a deal, with Democrats reportedly holding out for tougher conditions.
The optimism usually radiating from billionaire Bill Gates when it comes to climate change is starting to fade on one of his biggest technology bets: nuclear power.
Driving the news: The Microsoft co-founder has focused much of his time lately on climate change and energy innovation. In an exclusive interview with Axios, Gates said that setbacks he is facing with TerraPower, a nuclear technology firm he co-founded in 2006, has got him questioning the future of that entire energy source.
Peter Thiel, billionaire investor and Facebook board member, on Sunday night said that Google should be federally investigated for allegedly aiding the Chinese military.
Why it matters: Thiel is the tech industry's highest-profile Trump supporter, and one of the most powerful players in Silicon Valley.
Facebook's executives could be forgiven for thinking that this week was bad enough, what with Donald Trump attacking them on Twitter and Jay Powell pouring cold water on their cryptocurrency ambitions. But the Silicon Valley panopticon will get even more attention from Washington this week.
Driving the news: An antitrust hearing on Tuesday will feature executives from Apple, Amazon and Google as well as Facebook.
For over a year, China has moved to lead the creation of the first global norms for AI. Now, the U.S. is developing its own AI standards, as the two rivals compete to shape a technology that could define the future balance of authoritarian and democratic power.
What's happening: China's ambitions are a dimension of its all-hands push to lead the world in frontier technologies — especially AI — by the end of the next decade. Having been relegated to the sidelines in the last big cycle of standard-setting at the birth of the internet, Beijing is laser-focused on dominating this new round.
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