Todays #dailysignal looks at the rise of Tokyo's "black market" gig economy for part time crime work, and how it's not all THAT different to the "legitimate" gig economy when it comes to employers passing legal liability and side-stepping responsibly for their employees. (Much like the "real" fintech for "financial inclusion" - aka DEBT - is not altogether dissimilar from the black-hat "naked selfie" collateral loan shark industry - either way, you're caught.)
Anyway - what do you think?
Is it any surprise the underworld is making use of the digital platform economy and all its asymmetric benefits?
What are the reasons people are turning to the black market to find side gigs? -Is it just old fashioned greed? - or is the cost of living crisis reaching breaking point at the same time as the (easy gig) job market apocalypse is upon us?
And why is does it always seem that Japan is the canary in the proverbial coal mine?
Anyway, it's all getting very Snow Crash in here.
Read more:
Naked selfie loans (no I’m not kidding) : https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1461444820957257
Ginza! Black market gig work vacancies : https://unseenjapan.com/tokyo-ginza-robbery-dark-gig-economy/
Snow Crash crash course : https://www.diplomaticourier.com/posts/our-cyberpunk-present-our-cyberpunk-future-what-we-can-learn-from-neal-stephensons-snow-crash
Putting it all together - sex, drugs and AI Eurovision : https://www.fluxtrends.com/sex-drugs-and-ai-eurovision/
Are the kids gonna be ok? https://www.fluxtrends.com/innovation/page1.html
Black market gig market - it's all getting very Snow Crash around here