Whether you are ready or not, artificial intelligence will dramatically alter your daily existence—in fact, it already has. You are already being impacted and influenced by AI. With or without your knowing, AI is at work subtly manipulating what you spend your money on, what products are marketed to you, what entertainment is available to you, and what options are available to you as a consumer.

Going into the future, AI will continue to grow and spread throughout the world. For many, how you make a living will change drastically. Your job may be altered, or even made obsolete—and this is true for both blue-collar and white-collar jobs. Even managerial positions are being replaced with AI that can perform the same kinds of “thinking” that managers do: organizational and strategic decision making.

As you’ll read elsewhere on AIandYou, artificial intelligence is still new technology that is experiencing very critical growing pains. Because AI is only as smart as its programmers, it’s not uncommon for AI to have some of the same unconscious biases and prejudices as those who are writing the code. Indeed, AI is capable of the same racism, sexism, bigotry, classism, and antisemitism that humans are capable of.

Being aware of artificial intelligence — learning about it, preparing for it, even working with it — will be crucial in the short-term future. AI can be a tool for massive good and, as it stands now, a tool for sewing deep inequality. It’s up to you to make sure it doesn’t take you by surprise.