It’s paradoxical
You can tell them all about the Jevons paradox — the observation that as something becomes more efficient, demand for that more efficient thing increases rather than decreases. In the mid-19th century, William Jevons noticed that the use of coal became more efficient. Humans figured out how to get more heat and energy out of less and less coal. The common belief was that, because less coal was needed for the same amount of energy or heat, there would be less demand for coal as a result. Everyone was concerned that coal miners would lose their jobs. But Jevons noticed that demand for coal actually went up, as the more efficient processes led to more widespread uses for coal.
The same thing happened half a century earlier with the introduction of the automated loom. Despite fears that the power loom would destroy jobs for weavers, it made the production of clothing and other textile products cheaper, increasing demand for such products and increased employment in the textile industry.
This phenomenon can be seen over and over again. Spinning jennies, automobiles, computers, robotic manufacturing, tractors, sewing machines, and countless other inventions all caused widespread fears of job loss, but the fears were never really realized. When a company can suddenly produce 10 times more with the people they have, they have always wanted to produce 10 times more, not cut their workforce by 90%. Yet here we are, with everyone sure that AI is going to put us all out of work.
