Prospect Podcast

Sarah O’Connor: Should we fight the AI revolution?

New technologies are transforming the workplace. But we are not powerless bystanders

June 03, 2026
Image: Charlie Bibby
Image: Charlie Bibby

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Would you want to work with a robot? A new technological revolution is underway—but what that revolution looks like, and where it takes us, is still being determined.

This week, Ellen and Alona are joined by Sarah O’Connor, award-winning reporter and associate editor at the Financial Times, whose new book We Are Not Machines charts how AI is shaping the workplace.

Sarah shares her experience working alongside robots in an Amazon warehouse in Birmingham, visiting a Swedish mine, and learning from the controllers of driverless lorries. She examines the impacts of technology on workers and asks: what makes a bad relationship between a human and a machine—and what makes a good one?

She argues that machines will never be able to replace the rich talents of a human—and explains how we can actively shape the future of AI and its impact on us.

Sarah's book We Are Not Machines is published by Allen Lane. To read more on this topic, click here.