We would now rather be ruled over by robots than politicians. What has Brexit done to us?

We don’t like the idea of robots taking our jobs, so why do we think it’d be a good idea to let them lead? Let’s stop being ludicrous and consider whether we really would be prepared to sacrifice democracy for technocracy

The sinister way in which the rise of technology is portrayed in much of the mainstream media is starting to look like a string of cliches at best, and a teaser for a low-budget dystopian Netflix series at worst. Robots are stealing our jobs, artificial intelligence will render our hard-earned skills useless, and we’re all destined to turn into virtual-reality nerds with the social skills of a yoghurt pot.

And so you probably wouldn’t be surprised by most of the conclusions reached in a recently published study by the Centre for the Governance of Change at Spain’s IE University. Two acclaimed academics asked over 2,500 European adults from France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands and the UK about their perceptions of the impact of technology on our future.

Some 40 per cent said that they anticipate the company they currently work for to disappear within the next decade if it fails to implement “profound and fast changes”. Over 70 per cent said that they believe governments should resort to concrete policy measures to limit automation in businesses, and to tackle socially negative effects. And more than half of the respondents admitted to being somewhat or very concerned about a future where robots will carry out most human work.

So far so predictable, and not exactly breaking news that’s worthy of a front page. But then comes the plot twist. On page 10 of the chart-peppered report, the academics set the new-fangled cat among the oldschool pigeons, so to speak, by revealing that a quarter of respondents are somewhat or totally in favour of letting artificial intelligence make important decisions about the running of their country. In some places – including the Netherlands, Germany, and, yes, the UK – the figure was even higher at over 30 per cent.

We’re petrified of robots taking our own jobs and have been so for what feels like years. We’re seemingly prepared to fight tooth and nail to keep our sacred professions out of the claws of the Malicious Machine. But when it comes to some of the most powerful people in the world – the individuals who we implicitly trust to defend our basic human rights and represent our best interests on everything from health and housing to education and the economy – many of us are totally OK offering their jobs to Lord and Lady Robo on a plate.

The authors of the study commented that the responses to this question reflect the “growing mistrust citizens feel towards governments and politicians”. I’d say it reflects astronomical ignorance and profound hypocrisy. We’re sceptical of robots cleaning our houses, making our food and driving our cars, but many of us are perfectly happy giving them the not exactly trivial responsibility of overseeing the whole political and cultural system that we exist and interact by.

You might conveniently dismiss these findings as the notions of the opinionated ignorati – the vocal hoi polloi who like to share their unsolicited two cents on just about everything and anything, provided it gets traction on social media. But allow me to unnerve you: the research also showed that people with university degrees are equally or even more inclined to leave policy decisions in the hands of AI than those who didn’t go to university.

So perhaps we’re facing a new reality where we really are in deep, deep trouble. Amid a rise in the prominence of right-wing political strongmen, like Donald Trump and Viktor Orban, it’s easy to crave an alternative, and perhaps an unfeeling cyborg does have its certain charm. But let’s not get so carried away by the problems of today – Brexit, protectionism, trade wars and more – that we forsake the systems that have fundamentally served us well for longer than we care to admit.

Have we really become so disillusioned that we’re willing to trade a Maybot or a “Heartless Hillary” for Frankenstein’s sapient creation that will steer us into oblivion because of a software malfunction?

AI is imperfect. Emotions are a frontier yet to be truly reached by the tentacles of technology. So is empathy. So let’s snap out of our entitled, 21st-century sulk and get serious. Let’s stop being ludicrous and consider whether we really would be prepared to sacrifice democracy for technocracy. A minute ago robots were evil. Now we want to let them rule. Even they’d muster an expression of astonishment at this pathetic human fickleness.