AI doesn't "want to" control air traffic. It doesn't have any desire or ambition. That's what the humans are for.
It is merely a tool like a hammer. The hammer doesn't build the house, it is the human who wields the hammer that builds the house.
It is merely a tool like a hammer. The hammer doesn't build the house, it is the human who wields the hammer that builds the house.
Now, I'm not saying it's impossible for there to be something that makes the first job significantly easier than the second, but it's strange for me to assume that an AI would definitely be able to do the former soon, yet not the latter. I think it could be reasonable to believe it will be able to do neither or both soon, but I don't understand how we can expect the ability line to just happen to fall between software and pretty much everything else.
Frankly - even the other end of your argument is weak. Humans don't particularly want to control air traffic either (otherwise why are we having to pay those air traffic controllers their salaries to be there?). They do it as a function of achieving a broader goal.