A Fork in the Road: How We Handle AI & Robots Will Shape Our Communities

We’re standing at a fork in the road — one that will define the next decade for every neighborhood, workplace, and family.

On one side: powerful AI and autonomous robots that can do work humans used to do. From answering phones to stocking shelves, driving trucks to scanning medical charts — tasks that millions of people rely on for their livelihood.

On the other side: a chance to build better tools with people, not just for profit. Tools that lift communities up instead of leaving them behind.


⚙️ The promise — and the risk

Let’s be honest: AI and robotics are here. They’re getting better fast. Big companies see a way to cut costs, boost profits, and automate jobs away — often without a plan for the people and places they leave behind.

That’s the risk: we sleepwalk into a future where a handful of corporations own all the robots, all the data, all the value — while communities lose jobs, lose stability, and lose power over their own future.

But there’s another path: ownership and participation.


🔑 The better fork: community-owned automation

We believe technology should serve the people who depend on it — not just the few who build it.

That’s why our project exists:

  • We’re building practical, useful robots — but doing it openly, with simple, modifiable hardware.
  • We’re creating local jobs now, through our Tech Support Service and community subscriptions.
  • We reinvest what we earn into publicly owned robotics and automation infrastructure — not to get rich off your problems, but to build shared tools that stay in the hands of the people they serve.

It starts small: fixing your computer.
But it grows: teaching neighbors new skills.
And eventually: putting useful robots into real homes, offices, stores — designed and improved by the same community they help.


🌱 Why this matters now

We don’t have much time to choose our path. Big AI systems are already replacing call centers and back-office work. Delivery robots are rolling out on sidewalks. Self-checkout lanes are normal now.

If we don’t plan carefully, we repeat the old pattern: workers get left behind. Communities hollow out. More power concentrates in fewer hands.

Or — we can decide to own our share of the future, together.


✨ Our fork in the road

We’re not anti-robot. We’re not anti-AI. We’re pro-people.
We believe the right way forward is an open, community-first model where:

  • The tools are built with local input.
  • The revenue supports local jobs and local needs.
  • The skills stay in the community.
  • The benefits of automation are shared — not locked away behind a paywall.

This is the fork in the road.
We’re taking the path that keeps people at the center.


🤝 Want to help?

If you care about this vision:

  • Subscribe to our Tech Support Service — every dollar fuels local jobs and our robotics work.
  • Come to our Support Meetups — share ideas, learn, help shape what comes next.
  • Bring us your problems — your input drives what we build.
  • If you have skills — or want to learn — help us build open hardware, better software, or community resources.

Together, we can make sure that robots and AI don’t just replace — they empower.

It’s a big fork in the road. We know which way we’re going.

Join us.