AI Is Cutting Jobs and Creating New Ones.

I’m Eddie C. I still drive. Most days I’m up before the sun, phone on the mount, a few apps open, waiting on the next ping. Rideshare is my bridge right now. It pays the bills while I learn new skills, because I can see the seat changing under me. AI is changing the seat. It is not ending every path. Both of those things are true at the same time, and if you’re going through it right now, you need to hear both.

How I got here

Quick version, because the long one is on my About page. I lived in Puerto Rico until Hurricane Maria hit in 2017 and wiped everything out. I had to leave, so I came to Austin, Texas to start over. Then the pandemic shut the world down and I lost it all again. I started ridesharing and it carried me. But even while it was working, I knew it was a dead end once the talk about AI and robot cars started. Then inflation hit, and going back to a 9-to-5 didn’t make sense. Jobs weren’t paying enough to cover the bills. So I stayed with the gig apps.

I’m telling you this because I’m not writing from a nice office. Losing everything twice teaches you one thing fast. Don’t let one income, one job or one app be the only thing standing between you and the street.

The down: people are scared for a reason

The fear isn’t made up. Pew Research reports 71% of U.S. adults expect fewer jobs from AI, and among adults under 30 it’s 73%. Another Pew study found 52% of workers worried about AI at work.

I feel it in the car too. Gridwise saw human drivers’ trips per hour fall faster in cities where self-driving cars already run. I break those numbers down in what Nashville shows about autonomy and the seat. Robotaxis aren’t proven to be the only cause. But if you drive for a living, you don’t need a report to feel the ping getting thinner.

The up: new roles and ladders

Here’s the part the scary headlines skip. The World Economic Forum estimates 170 million roles created and 92 million displaced by 2030. Robots take over repetitive tasks, but physical, hands-on work keeps growing.

I’ve seen it in my own reading:

• Robot cars still need humans. In Nashville, former Lyft drivers are cleaning, charging and inspecting Waymos. Lyft’s Flexdrive unit says self-driving cars can’t clean, charge or repair themselves. That’s in the Nashville post.
• When a Waymo gets stuck, a trained human answers. It’s advice, not someone steering from home, and it’s a small bench, not a hiring wave. Details are in what Waymo’s remote help really is.
• Warehouses full of robots need people who fix robots. Amazon posts a Mechatronics and Robotics Apprenticeship: 12 weeks of paid classroom training, then 2,000 hours of paid mentorship, no previous technical experience required. I wrote it up in Amazon’s robot floor and the repair ladder.
• Humanoid robots are starting in factories, not homes. Tesla’s Optimus is a real factory and training program, but you can’t buy one for your house yet. The early ones are for training. See Optimus is in the factory plan, not your living room.

So the pattern is the same every time. The machine takes the repeat work, and a human still has to maintain it, charge it, clean it, fix it and step in when it gets confused.

Way through: bridge cash plus a skill

This is my plan. Steal whatever helps.

1. Keep the bridge cash coming. Don’t quit your income to “go learn AI.” Stack apps instead. On /gigs/ I put my strategy at the top. I signed up for about 20 apps, about 12 accepted me, and I only use 5. My day starts at 5am and I’m on the road by 6am for early airport runs and people going to work. After the morning rush I stick to short local trips, take a break in the afternoon, and come back for the evening shift. That’s long days, 7 days a week, and it only works because there’s a GOAL at the end. It’s my routine, not a promise. Pay depends on your city, your hours and each app, and gross pay isn’t take-home. Pick your state on /gigs/ for official apply links to rideshare, food, grocery, courier and shift apps. I also wrote a quick gig apps and couriers note that points to the same state search.

2. Pick a skill that needs your hands. My Trade schools page lists eleven trades with lower near-term AI risk than routine office work: electricians, lineworkers, plumbers, HVAC, elevator techs, wind turbine techs, solar installers, radiologic and surgical techs, firefighters, and water plant operators. That page says it straight: lower risk is not AI-proof. What these jobs share is being on site, licensed, and dealing with messy real-world problems. Most start with a registered apprenticeship or a community college certificate, and you can search schools and apprenticeships by state on that page.

3. Use AI as a tool, not a boss. I use AI to speed up the draft and the digging, like research, notes and planning my week. It doesn’t stack the side hustles for me while I drive. You still have to show up.

4. Keep one more door open. For me that’s day trading. It’s charts at night after shift, learning slowly, with no promise attached. For you it might be a trade, a certificate, or a small side business. Just don’t sit still.

FAQ

Is AI going to take all the jobs?

No one knows the exact number. The same sources that show fear also show growth. WEF estimates more roles created than displaced by 2030, but they’re different roles. The repeat work shrinks, and hands-on and oversight work grows.

Should I quit driving to go to school?

Not if driving is paying your bills. Treat the gig apps as your bridge and learn on the side. That’s what I’m doing.

Which trades are the safest bet?

None are guaranteed. The Trade schools page shows eleven with lower near-term AI risk and cites where each claim comes from. Check your state’s licensing and training rules before you sign up for anything.

Can I get paid while I learn a trade?

Some do. Amazon says its apprenticeship pays through the classroom training and the mentorship hours. For any other program, don’t assume. Read the official program page first.

Will robotaxis replace rideshare drivers?

In some cities they already take trips, and the work is being redesigned. Right now humans still clean, charge, inspect and assist those cars. That’s not a one-for-one swap, so keep your bridge up while you build the next skill.

Where do I start today?

Pick your state on /gigs/ to keep cash coming, then pick one trade on /trades/ to look into this week. Fear polls, forecasts and real paid ladders can all be true at once. Move before the ping thins.

A man with many skills will always survive.

— Eddie C, Driving In Style / Hustle On Hustle