As we progress into a world where human beings can be conveniently replaced by software powered by artificial intelligence at work, we explore a hypothetical human-centric business model that aims to work with humans interested in developing art through work.

  • Clients will not make unreasonable demands. If a demand is deemed unreasonable by the service provider, it should be opposed. If the client does not agree, business should be concluded then and there. Clients should be glad that the service provider has chosen to work with them and not the other way around. This is because in future, there will be thousands of companies using A.I to deliver “quick service”.
  • Timelines for delivery to be mutually agreed upon between service provider and client, with service provider getting the final call. This flexibility ensures accountability on service provider in case of failure.
  • No use of artificial intelligence. Data and guidance should be manually sourced from forums, automation scripts to be used to speed up repetitive work and group discussions(in person or video calls) to be used for communications. The solutions need to be the best possible solutions, they need to be elegant and artistic avoiding the unnecessary clutter that comes along with most templates for maximum optimization.
  • Making money is not the goal. Showing off hard work and art via manual labour is. This goes for both client and service provider, mentalities need to match. Businesses thrive when conducted amongst like-minded entities.
  • The profit does not need to skyrocket every financial year. Investors will not be wooed using standard techniques of using economic parameters, they will invest of their accord if they want to finance art. Due to inflation, service provider would need to charge more from clients so that labourers can get a stable income to run their physical bodies. Clients need to agree to this condition to continue business with the service provider.
  • Quality of service should primarily depend on quality of work being delivered to client instead of bootlicking or providing service at discounts. Completing something instantly is not the business model being aimed for, but complete transparency about progress from planning to delivery should be aimed for. An efficient product delivered after performing rigorous stress tests is necessary. The work should be nothing short of art; anything lesser should equate to failure. Work delivered to meet standard requirements on paper is mediocre work and is to be viewed as an offence to the service provider’s level of artistry and the client’s expectations.
  • Cosmetic enhancements should not disrupt core functionalities. Art should be efficiently eloquent, and the work needs to convey the same from the foundations to the overview. For example, a statue can be easily carved out of chalk and can look much better as compared to polishing out a Shiv Lingam out of an exotic rock. However, under acid rains the Shiv Lingam will preserve its form whereas the chalk statue will corrode. Art is dependent on the observer, but settling on “good enough” should not be the end-goal of the design team.
  • Human beings are not born to become bots and this business model needs to be invoked to prove this important point to the universe. Every worker needs to be passionate, artistic, competitive and determined to invoke the best possible effort. The effort a worker puts in will be a testament of their skills and knowledge. Hunger for money is detrimental which is why humans who are interested in “climbing the ladder” or “bulking their pockets” should be discouraged from joining the company as these people are no better than “industrial resources”. Deserving a “fat package” has nothing to do with showing off art because the worker is focused on being an artist instead of being a banker.
  • Candidates who have “families to feed” or dream of being “millionaires” or “switched for better package” are the people who are a misfit in this business model. Talented people and geniuses who flamboyantly showcase their skills by waving costly certificates need to be put to test by explaining why they would not be paid according to the “industry standards”. Ideal artists, who will ignore the numbers for the responsibility are the ones truly worthy and with time, they’ll become indispensable. Thinkers need to be employed instead of bots interested in cash and promotion.

A human body is a work of art to the extent that human beings have not been able to understand comprehensively how exactly it works. The body can withstand a variety of temperatures, has a high mobility, is capable of handling physical and mental load, use mechanisms to report inconsistencies in physiology(inflammation, reflexes etc) and heal itself using inbuilt biological mechanisms that learn with time. Human bodies grow and adapt, and is dependent on organic nutrition for continuity. As opposed to a cybernetic / synthetic / prosthetic being, a human body is much more fluid. Sophistication is not in machine but in organic beauty that automatically updates reliably because it takes a longer time to perfect itself. Good things take time, which is useful as obscene mutations are ugly. Why should the consciousness residing in a perfectly crafted human body want to exist like a bot?

The standard industrial workforce depends upon appreciation emails from the upper management that is an example of mere corporate formality. Salary hikes per switch, promotions after a certain period in the industry and self-advertisement for an impeccable online profile are the plagues infesting the minds of today’s workforce. This is the trend, and it has been so since the era of industry which makes the work delivered to have zero value in the long run as the effort was provided mostly to make money by the majority. Some good has come out of it, but most of it ends up harming the Earth. Congratulations to ideators who used the industrial mules to get their names etched in history as frontiers of digital progress. Instead of creating art, humanity has ended up preaching a toxic pattern which it cannot break out of because bank balance, status, investments, social outreach and statistical progress matters more in a society predominated by like-minded individuals.

Work delivered should be worth preserving, it should be beautiful and perfect. Instead of hurling corporate lingo in conversations like investment, metrics, deadlines, sprints and equity the focus should be on empowering people to take work personally. The time being invested is personal, and no amount of money should be able to buy that. Teams should constantly brainstorm improvements and discuss about future enhancements, efficient implementations. Each member should be a personal stakeholder in the company, and not just labourers employed to complete a set of instructions. This is genuine labour that equates to creation of art which humans conveniently kicked out as money polluted minds, creating bots out of beings.