I wrote this in June 2018 when UBI was gaining mainstream attention. Seven years later the debate is louder but the math hasn't changed.
UBI sounds noble until you think about it for more than five minutes.
If everyone gets $10k and everything else stays the same, great. But everything else doesn't stay the same. Prices adjust. Value recalibrates. The $10k means less every month.
The "AI will take all jobs" narrative is the emotional trigger driving UBI support. But here's the thing — we said the same about the printing press, the loom, the assembly line.
2025 reality check
I wrote this in 2018. In 2025, AI has transformed work but hasn't eliminated it. It shifted what work means. The people who adapted are thriving. The ones waiting for a government cheque are still waiting.
The UBI conversation has evolved, but the fundamental flaw hasn't. It treats the symptom (people losing specific jobs) instead of the cause (people not adapting to new kinds of work). Every technological revolution killed old jobs and created new ones. The gap between the two is real and painful — but filling it with a flat payment doesn't solve the transition. It anaesthetises it.
The real safety net isn't a cheque. It's adaptability. The people who learned new tools, built new skills, and moved when the ground shifted — they don't need UBI. The people who didn't aren't going to be saved by it either.