Maybe it happens, maybe it doesn’t, but manipulating digital output seems like a step that would come before manipulating real world objects.
I don't know why one would have expected "AI" to be capable of stamping out machines that have fine motor skills, but to me, it seems perfectly in line that they can re-arrange pixels on a screen to mimic something humans previously made.
The parameters for folding laundry in each individual's home or doing the dishes are so much greater than deconstructing and re-arranging digital information based on prior probabilities.
All the "smart" people I know were not expecting to replace their HVAC/plumbing/electrical/house cleaners/etc work with automation.
Money. A whole lot of money. They won't live in the dystopian reality of most people in the near future, they'll buy their way out and live their comfortable lives.
But how do you explain the non-elites who are cheering on this dystopian reality? Some of them here in the HN comment section? If this thing that you are cheering for comes true, you'll be just as out of work and underclass as everyone else!
Do people really think the measly $2M 401(k) they got from their tech job is enough to buy them a ticket to the Elysium space station?
Move to a low cost area and live like a king.
You mean a washing machine and a dish washer?