Automation in manufacturing has been with us for a century or so and its effects have made more and more sophisticated material possessions available to larger and larger markets. More part content, more sophisticated parts, lower and lower cost, more features and therefore, more value to the buyer. Or, in another vein, more food available to more people, better sorted, safer, more consistent quality and attributes.

Automation does reduce the human labor content in the goods we purchase, but at the same time, it reduces the cost of those goods so that more units are sold and more people can afford them. Less human labor per item, but many more items.