Luddite
In plain wordsOriginally one of the English textile workers who smashed machines in protest in the 1810s; now anyone who opposes new technology, often used as an insult against AI skeptics.
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Historyhistorical
A participant in the protests of 1811–1816 in which English textile workers, mainly in Nottinghamshire, Yorkshire and Lancashire, smashed machinery such as stocking frames, shearing frames and power looms to resist wage cuts, unemployment and the degradation of their trades by factory owners. They took their name from a mythical leader, Ned (also General or King) Ludd. The British government deployed troops and made machine-breaking a capital crime in 1812. Historians stress that the Luddites targeted the way machines were used against workers rather than technology as such.
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General
By extension, a person who opposes or distrusts new technology, often used dismissively of AI critics. Some critics have reclaimed the label as neo-Luddism, arguing, like the original movement, that the real issue is who controls technology and who benefits. The 'Luddite fallacy' is economists' name for the belief that labor-saving technology must cause lasting mass unemployment.
Calling every critic of the data-center build-out a Luddite is easier than answering their questions about water.
Origin
From Ned Ludd, according to legend a Leicestershire youth who broke stocking frames around 1779; 'Luddite' was in use by 1811 for the machine-breakers. The figurative sense is a 20th-century development; Brian Merchant's Blood in the Machine (2023) revived interest in the Luddites in AI debates.
Related
- technological unemploymenttechnological unemployment, n.: Joblessness caused by machines or software taking over work that people used to be paid for, faster than new kinds of work appear for them.
- automationautomation, n.: Using machines or software to do work that people would otherwise do, from factory robots to programs that sort email or write reports.
- deskillingdeskilling, n.: The loss of people's skills when machines take over the work that used to keep those skills sharp, or when jobs are redesigned so that less skill is needed.
- AI hypeAI hype, n.: Exaggerated claims about what AI can do or will soon do, made to attract money, attention or customers, which can mislead the public and policymakers.
- deceldecel, n.: A dismissive label, used mainly by AI accelerationists, for anyone who wants AI development slowed down, paused or heavily regulated.
- doomerdoomer, n.: Someone who believes advanced AI is likely to cause a catastrophe, possibly human extinction; often used as a put-down by people who think those fears are exaggerated.
Sources
- Thompson, E. P. (1963). The Making of the English Working Class. Victor Gollancz.
- Merchant, B. (2023). Blood in the Machine: The Origins of the Rebellion Against Big Tech. Little, Brown.
Mentioned in
automationautomation, n.: Using machines or software to do work that people would otherwise do, from factory robots to programs that sort email or write reports., technological unemploymenttechnological unemployment, n.: Joblessness caused by machines or software taking over work that people used to be paid for, faster than new kinds of work appear for them.