UCLA Extension
Although many of us would probably not like to be replaced by a machine at our jobs, the truth is that machines are simply better than humans at many jobs. The fields of robotics and artificial intelligence are both working to automate many common and uncommon workplace tasks. Remember, after all, that the word “robot” was derived from the Czech “robota”, which means compulsory labor. The earliest science fiction writers knew that machines were destined to take our work. So is that a good or bad thing?
Real estate tech platform SetSchedule reviews housing market data uses artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms. This can be seen as an example of technology making a worker more efficient, rather than replacing them. In essence, this service identifies trends in the local market to help real estate agents identify homes which are likely to go on sale.
Should You Be Concerned That SetSchedule Reviews Your Data?
If you’ve been thinking about selling your home, and you suddenly get a call from a real estate agent who found your home via SetSchedule reviews, it can feel like the machines have been spying on you. After all, you had only told a few friends you were getting ready to sell, you hadn’t even searched for “how to sell my house.”
The machines aren’t spying on you, however. (Well, Alexa probably is, but she didn’t sell your data to SetSchedule) They’re just predicting your behavior based on publicly-available data. When SetSchedule reviews the local real estate market, they look at how frequently homes sell in your area, when your home was purchased, neighborhood demographics, and more. Based on all of these factors, the machine determined you were among the people most likely to sell your house.
Those who create and implement machine learning algorithms have to be careful about privacy concerns. There’s a famous story about how one major retailer was using its loyalty program to determine which specialized offers to send to customers, and was determining people might be pregnant before they were ready to share that news.
We often don’t realize how much our public data or the data we share with retailers reveals about us. Machines are able to see patterns which we miss, as well as being able to access, process, and analyze more simultaneous data points than a human being can. What can feel like an invasion of privacy to you, the homeowner just starting to think about selling, is just a machine making a good prediction based on the available data.
Why Was This Technology Developed?
SetSchedule reviews real estate market data because real estate agents have a constant need for new leads. While many agents rely on referral networks and advertising, lead generation services can also be a valuable tool for helping them connect with people who are ready to sell their house in the near future.
So if you receive a call from a friendly real estate agent asking if you’d like to sell your home, don’t freak out! They’re just relying on a helpful tip from a very clever algorithm.
