@NiceUnparticularMan, I think you make really good points here. I’m reminded that a century ago in the 1920’s and 1930’s there was a job called “computer”. This was a person who did arithmetic - calculations by hand with pencil and paper.
This job was eventually replaced by adding machines. Business machines (IBM), cash registers (National Cash Register) and a wide array of other equipment and machinery created greater efficiency and increased accuracy. The collective effect was a more robust economy, more jobs, and increased employment. I talk to a lot of people these days who fear AI (not you). I think we have to learn how to use it and work with it. It’s a dramatic change, but we have to bring it into our schools and teach kids how to use it.
I recently visited the Erie Canal Museum in Syracuse. I was struck by how much the history of transportation parallels progress in other areas. The most efficient form of transportation to replace foot travel (animal as well as human) was travel by water, so there was rapid building of canals, which was an improvement over coastal only travel & shipping. Rail replaced canals, but new canals continued to be built even as rail lines were rapidly developing and expanding. Highways replaced rail, but we still use rail p and some canals. Finally we have air travel today, providing next day delivery almost everywhere. What’s next?