Since the Industrial Revolution started in 1760, mankind has been moving increasingly from farming for a living to factories, increasing the trend of urbanization. This came with a number of benefits, but also a number of short term problems as factory workers who sought opportunity in the cities were put into some of the most miserable working conditions. Subsistence farming, once a very common means of survival in the developed world, became far more rare, although farming must still exist for the production of food. Much of your food today along with all other products you purchase at the store have traveled all over the world thanks to the Industrial Revolution whereas before then goods were produced mostly locally.
Today, we stand on the brink of technological innovations that will completely change the fabric of society once again. Robotics are already beginning to do much of the work in factories, and will become far more completely capable as we begin to integrate AI with robotic systems. 3D printing is becoming cheap and offers a glimpse into a future where we may be able to manufacture many products we desire from a 3D design on a home computer. If we can integrate metal 3D printing with the 3D printing of other materials like silicon, I could predict a time when we are able to 3D print our own computer chips, thus reducing the price of technology many times over by eliminating a pricey manufacturing process that makes use of factories. Factories will soon become a vestigial structure of society. They will be outmoded.
What is the consequence of all this? Well, urbanization occurred on a large scale mainly because factories formed in cities that required many employees. People left their farms to go to these industrial factories because of the opportunity for greater pay. This caused cities to grow and major metropolises to form. Even today, people see cities as lands of opportunity. People often move to large cities because they think to make a name for themselves, they seek employment, or they seek more money. Because the cost of living is higher, pay is higher. There are amenities in cities because they are centers of business. All the stores you can think about are in the city. The best malls, the best grocery stores, and the best hardware shops are all found in the city. The best hospitals and doctors are also there. People often make two to four hour transits from their rural homes in small towns to large cities just to go to the best stores or to see the best physicians.
So, I conclude that the consequence is a new trend towards migration back to rural regions. As robots begin to take over the agricultural domain, it might be more attractive to own a ranch as you can just let your robots do all of the work. Also, let’s be honest, most people aren’t entirely in love with dealing with crowds. Maybe I’m wrong on that point, but people in New York City have a notorious reputation for bad attitudes. The following study actually shows that people are usually happier in the country than in the city: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2018/05/17/people-who-live-in-small-towns-and-rural-areas-are-happier-than-everyone-else-researchers-say/. Basically, city life is overrated. I’m sure many people would trade their urban apartments today for a quiet plot of land in the country if they didn’t feel like it was impossible. That noisy neighbor always yelling at his wife next door and that other one beneath you always blasting that rap music you hate are not exactly conducive to your mental happiness. When it becomes cheap to simply have a robot to build a new house for you, you might be more likely to consider a completely empty plot of land which are honestly quite cheap in certain states. Now, if the robot can also farm, you don’t have to get your hands dirty any more to provide for yourself. Just let the robots do the work of feeding you. Online sales might start to be a more common way of purchasing other objects, but your 3D printer can actually make most of them as long as you have the raw materials. Your own $300 manufacturing plant is sitting in your garage. You don’t even really need to order most of the things you can think of, just pull the design off the internet. That will make merchandise cheaper because information is cheap. A Kindle copy of a book is always cheaper than a paperback or hardcover, but you now have your 3D printer which has the power to print with many materials. It can even print the hardcover book you wish to purchase. Abra kadabra, you can manufacture everything you want in your own home with the right computer code. About the natural resources: you have a team of robot miners and robot lumberjacks to get all the wood and useful metals you desire. The miners might be a problem on a personal level if you don’t have the mineral rights to the land you own or access to any useful resources where you do own mineral rights. Maybe asteroid mining is the only region of industry that won’t be localized when it becomes an industry. The raw materials should, however, be much cheaper than scores of manufactured products.
The conclusion of these thoughts are that, as strange as it sounds, the advance of robotic manufacturing is actually going to undo the society created by the first Industrial Revolution and cause cities to become smaller, not larger. The Fourth Industrial Revolution is the final Industrial Revolution and will undo many of the changes made in the Second Industrial Revolution. Perhaps I’m wrong, but it seems to make sense.
