By 2033, robots will do most of the housework

In the next 10 years, robots will take over almost 39% of the time humans spend on household chores

Photo : Builtin|The humanoid android robot Alter recreates human movements at the Mirakian Museum in Tokyo 

A group of artificial intelligence specialists from the UK and Japan estimate that in the future, a robot will likely spend around 39% of its time doing household chores. So get ready for more free time!

According to the research group that published their findings in PLoS ONE, over the next decade, artificial intelligence could help solve many of the unpaid household chores that currently take up many hours of our day.

A previous study found that people aged 15-64 in the UK typically spend around 43% of their working and studying time on unpaid household chores. These can be household chores such as cooking and cleaning, caring for children or the elderly, and anything else that could be replaced with commercially available goods.

In the UK alone, working-age men spend about half as much time as working-age women. Compared to Japanese women, Japanese men spend only 18% more time doing housework.

However, a small number of studies have examined how automation predictions vary among different AI experts, or how automation compares to unpaid tasks.Therefore, the study authors consulted 29 AI specialists from the UK and 36 experts from Japan. The team had to predict how 17 different home and care businesses would become "automated" over the next decade.

According to the combined forecasts of experts, in the next 10 years almost 39% of the time people currently spend doing any kind of housework will be taken up by robots.

The estimates, of course, varied greatly from task to task. The most likely automated activity was grocery shopping (59%). Physical care of children was the least automated activity (21%). It's worth noting that more British professionals (42%) than Japanese professionals (36%) are expected to replace tasks with automation. The study authors speculate that this may be because technology is more directly linked to labor replacement in the UK than in Japan.

Brits are more in favor of automating household chores compared to their peers. This is consistent with previous research, which has shown that men are generally more optimistic about technology than women. However, among Japanese technology specialists, the situation is reversed and women are slightly more optimistic. According to the researchers, gender differences in housework in Japan may have contributed to these results.

For clarification, the study authors point out that the sample size is too small to apply the project results to all AI professionals as they are not statistically representative of the industry.

The team also say that these projections are actively shaping the future of employment. They conclude that it is crucial to increase cultural and gender diversity in future research.