Over a billion people work in factories, more than ever have, some for as little as 10 cents an hour. The working class in the global South are effectively subsidising the one in the North. They are subject to the most vicious exploitation. It's not to say there isn't horrible poverty in the North, but the whole story these AI/Automation freaks use is based on a parochial view from the global North and taking the world has a whole it's junk.