In 1811, a group of English textile workers began smashing machines. Not out of ignorance or irrational fear of technology, but because the machines were destroying their livelihoods. They were the Luddites—skilled craftspeople, not mindless saboteurs—and their crime was simple: refusing to be made obsolete by profit-hungry factory owners. They were not anti-progress, but anti-being replaced and forced into poverty.
Unfortunately, their resistance didn’t prevent the rise in unemployment following the mechanisation of the workplace. But the Luddites remain politically relevant as we stare down a similarly disruptive challenge: digitalisation. AI’s rapid takeover of entry-level jobs is staggering—and it’s a direct attack on us as young people.
As we stand at the dawn of a new era, we must decide: will we embrace AI’s influence, or become the Luddites of the 21st century?
How It Should Be Done
Karl Marx would have seen AI as the biggest opportunity for workers in a century—and, in a way, he’s kind of right. Marx argued that when a machine came along and replaced a worker’s job, that worker should celebrate, get a pay rise, and a day off. The profits generated by new technology should be equally shared among the workers, who would eat unicorn-rainbow cupcakes and skip around in the meadows of uncut grass.
Okay, okay—maybe not the last part. But if Marx could wave a magic wand and cast Earth into a comm-u-topia, AI would certainly have a major role to play. It would not be seen as the impending catastrophe that now hovers over the dreams of young people.
This idea isn’t pulled from nowhere. Marx outlines it in Capital, Volume I, particularly Chapter 15 (‘Machinery and Modern Industry’). He explains how, in theory, machines should reduce the burden on workers, not replace them entirely. But that only works if power and profit are shared fairly.
But fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on your political preference, we do not live in such a world. Reality is very different. The instinct of many capitalist feudal lords is, unsurprisingly, the exact opposite of Marx’s vision. When new technology arrives, they don’t share it but exploit it. They choose the unpaid worker over the paid one. And instead of a raise, they cut the workforce and fire their employees. A blind craving for profit drives these money-mad bosses to claw every penny into their bulging pockets.
After all, what’s stopping them?
This is where the Luddites come in. They didn’t stand by and let corporations push them around. They stood up. This article argues that we should, too.
The Race for AI
The contestants prepare on the starting line. On Team A, Elon Musk adjusts his sweatband. Jeff Bezos stretches his hamstrings. They’re here to represent the corporate class: the unforgiving, anti-union bosses. Your modern-day Jacob Marley and Ebenezer Scrooge. And they think they’re going to win.
Cue Team B: the Unions. The people. Ordinary citizens whose wealth may be dwarfed by their opponents’ riches, but whose sheer number could change the course of the race. They are united by fear. The fear that they will lose their jobs to a ravenous managerial machine that chews up dreams and spits out the bones of profitless potential. The fear that AI will do nothing but harm and destroy the very fabric of their livelihoods is a legitimate concern.
The gun is fired. The race begins.
And we are being lapped.
The billionaires are already drawing up a blueprint for AI dominance. They’ve invested immeasurable amounts. They’ve hired armies of developers. They’re shaping policy in backroom meetings before we even know what’s on the agenda. Meanwhile, the unions—our supposed champions—seem to be asleep at the wheel.
An early lead in this race could seal our fate. And suddenly, the apocalyptic prediction of techno-feudalism, as described by economist Yanis Varoufakis in Technofeudalism: What Killed Capitalism (2023), starts to feel disturbingly realistic. Varoufakis argues that we’re no longer living under capitalism, but something darker, where those who control the digital infrastructure effectively act as unelected overlords, collecting ‘digital rent’ and wielding unchecked power. If AI becomes monopolised in this way, we won’t be employees, we’ll become serfs.
Young People: The Primary Victims
Youth unemployment has reached an all-time high. With one in eight young people out of work, education, or training (NEETs), the Westminster cannons have been loaded. Their new target? Us. Lazy, phone-addicted, brain-dead slugs. These may not be the exact words used, but we all know those stereotypes live rent-free in politicians’ heads.
As young people, we need to challenge this narrative. Make it clear that the epidemic of unemployment is not our fault, but the result of the unregulated explosion of artificial intelligence.
Since the launch of ChatGPT, the number of entry-level jobs has dropped by almost one-third or 32 per cent. Nobody needs a paid assistant when they can have a browser do it for free. And just like that, the potential job market has shrunk.
Some experts may correct me here and say it’s shrinking, but not all doom and gloom. Let’s be honest, though: the decline is steep, and growing in sync with AI development.
In fact, according to projections from the World Economic Forum, up to 83 million jobs could be lost globally by 2027 due to automation and AI. And while 69 million new jobs are expected to be created, this will still mean a net loss of 14 million jobs.
Yeah, whatever. Some yoga-teaching, art-loving hippie might say there are jobs AI will never do. But that just isn’t the case for young people. The vital positions that help us onto the job ladder are vanishing fast.
And where’s the outrage? Where are the Westminster debates, the policies, the support?
Once again, it’s down to us. A crisis we have to fix. A race we have to win.
The Road Ahead
The sweaty palms and over-rehearsed handshakes in the waiting room of a careers advisor. You want to be a graphic designer? A video creator? A finance manager?
‘I’m sorry, but your job has been terminated.’
Is it fair to see this new age as a direct threat to our aspirations?
Should we become 21st-Century Luddites and fight to change the system that concocted this mess?
The ball is in our court. And it’s time to make a decision.
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