AI and robotics are taking over the cannabis industry. Are they replacing jobs?

Key takeaways:

• Automation and AI are transforming the cannabis industry, impacting everything from cultivation to retail operations.
• Regulatory uncertainty has been slowing adoption.
• But human interaction remains critical, particularly in roles like budtenders, who influence up to 90% of customers’ purchasing decisions.

The cannabis industry is on the verge of a major tech makeover.

Automation and artificial intelligence are stepping in to handle everything in the supply chain from growing plants to selling products. As in other sectors in the economy, the rise of the machines is raising serious questions about what happens to the humans currently doing those jobs in the labor-intensive cannabis industry.

“Almost every job in this industry is replaceable,” Avis Bulbulyan, CEO of California-based consultancy Siva, told MJBizDaily.

“Budtenders? They could be replaced with something as simple as a kiosk.”

But he’s not just talking about retail.

From planting and harvesting to sorting and packaging, robotics and AI are poised to completely change how cannabis businesses operate in cannabis, an industry once touted as a reliable source of jobs, industry observers contacted for this article told MJBizDaily.

Is the cannabis industry ready for a tech takeover?

Consider the supply chain.

Say a shipment of cannabis products arrives at a warehouse. Instead of a team of workers unpacking and organizing it, the products are dumped onto a conveyor belt.

From there, robots equipped with optical detection systems categorize, sort and store everything – no human hands required.

Retail is also getting a tech upgrade. Automated kiosks with touchscreens allow customers to browse products and pay for purchases. Robotic arms then could handle dispensing cannabis from store shelves, Bulbulyan said.

“The product wouldn’t touch human hands until it’s in the customer’s hands,” Bulbulyan said.

This kind of setup could eliminate most retail jobs, leaving only a few roles like executives and security staff, he said.

But for a pair of Arizona companies that have deployed kiosks in Arizona, AI is just a small part of the equation.

What cannabis industry jobs are most likely to be replaced by AI?

Through a joint venture, cannabis wellness company Life Is Chill and technology platform LoveBud have installed about 1,000 cannabis-ordering kiosks at non-cannabis-related businesses in several Arizona communities.

The vision is putting them in independent living communities to make it easier for seniors to access cannabis.

Through the kiosks, customers can browse products and place orders. The kiosk will take a photo of their ID and allow them to pay with a debit or credit card. The kiosks also use AI to answer simple questions.

“We are going to plug in AI for questions like the difference between indica and sativa, but we feel it’s important to have a real person you can call in and talk to,” LoveBud CEO James Watkins said.

Among the challenges the team must overcome is educating people that kiosks don’t actually dispense cannabis products. Instead, LoveBud delivers them.

“Because we’re saying it’s a kiosk, they think the marijuana is inside,” said Star Simmons, managing director and co-founder of Life Is Chill.

Can AI give cannabis industry operators bigger margins?

Other areas where AI can be used include refining extraction techniques, improving packaging efficiency and even screening seeds to determine whether they’re male or female or whether they are suitable for propagation.

“In doing so, they’re reducing costs significantly,” Whitney said.

But the biggest shakeup might hit distribution.

Businesses that previously needed 40,000 square feet to 50,000 square feet of warehouse and distribution space could shrink to just 5,000 square feet to 6,000 square feet with automation, Bulbulyan said.

But the use of AI isn’t as widespread as it could be.

“People are gun-shy about investing because of regulatory chaos,” Bulbulyan said. “Once those risks are taken out, companies will have the confidence to spend on these systems.”

Can automation replace every cannabis industry worker?

While automation can do much for operators, it’s not a magic bullet.

Just look at budtenders. A survey commissioned by retail technology platform Sweed found that 76% of cannabis shoppers say a budtender’s expertise directly influences what they buy. That number jumps to 78% for Gen Z and millennials.

“Budtenders influence 85% to 90% of purchasing decisions,” Whitney said. “Training is essential. You can’t fully replace the human interaction that helps guide consumers to the right products.”

And then there’s the social side of cannabis that cannot be replaced by AI or any sort of automation.

“Regulations have tried to suppress that, but community and education are vital,” said Oregon-based cannabis industry-focused economist Beau Whitney. “You can’t replace that with a bot.”

What’s the right balance?

As the cannabis industry deals with oversupply, falling prices and regulatory hurdles, automation and AI promises a method to cut costs and boost efficiency.

But they’re not a cure-all. Human expertise and interaction are still critical, especially when it comes to educating customers and building community, some say.

“The people who succeed will be those who embrace these tools without losing site of the human element,” Sweed co-founder Rocco Del Priore told MJBizDaily.

“Automation is a force multiplier, but it’s not a replacement for thoughtful strategy and personal connection.”

Margaret Jackson can be reached at margaret.jackson@mjbizdaily.com.