This blog was 100% written by a human, not a robot. There is still a need for content writers — at least to some extent, for now.
What about your job? Have you contemplated whether it’s possible for artificial intelligence (AI) to infiltrate even the intangible essence of your livelihood? Could all of the knowledge, skills, and experience you might have spent years acquiring be rendered obsolete by robotic technology? Can you imagine AI improving your work performance, providing greater job satisfaction, or inspiring a career change?
Preoccupation with such questions is becoming no less intense with the surge in online media posts about jobs that will be replaced by AI. These are the ones we’ll try to answer here:
Notwithstanding the current hype surrounding AI’s globally disruptive impact across all industries, the concept of machines mimicking human intelligence is nothing new. AI definitions have evolved over the years, along with enabling technologies and applications. But that self-explanatory pair of words — artificial intelligence — means basically the same thing as it did back in 1956 when AI was formally established as an academic discipline: a machine’s ability to perform traditionally human tasks.
Since then, AI breakthroughs have revolutionized our lives to an extent once fathomed only in science fiction fantasies. Machine learning has been a powerful AI game-changer in recent years. This computer science branch focuses on data-driven simulations of human learning from experience. Computer systems “train themselves” for making decisions and predictions by parsing massive amounts of data and identifying patterns. Rather than being programmed with definitive instructions on how to complete a task, AI systems learn by example how to do the task themselves. A common way to accomplish this is using neural network software, modeled after the biological neural systems that enable humans to process information.
Yet, the transition from radical to the mainstream has often been gradual and subtle, which changes sneaking up on us when we’re going about our same-old, same-old daily activities. Amazon and Netflix recommendations now routinely influence our buying and entertainment choices and voice-activated digital assistants like Siri and Alexa are conveniences we take for granted. From facial recognition phone unlocking to robot vacuum cleaners, the wow factor phase of new AI applications can fade quickly from novel to normal.
But there’s no sign of waning enthusiasm for the chatbot craze, as tech aficionados keep weighing in on the cool things that these AI language processing tools can do well, and might do better with some tweaking.
The currently most prominent AI chatbot, introduced in November 2022, is ChatGPT, the brainchild of the research lab Open AI. This advanced application of generative pre-trained transformer (GPT) technology — sometimes called generative AI — is capable of understanding and responding naturally to text inputs. Much of the sustained buzz surrounding its user-friendly appeal relates to versatility. ChatGPT can answer questions in a flash, translate languages, ace college-level exams, land job interviews, write code, and assist with all manner of writing tasks. The GPT-4 update can read and respond to images.
In March 2023, Microsoft and Google introduced their own chatbots — Bing (an AI add-on to their existing search engine) and Bard, respectively.
The mind-boggling efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and error-proofing benefits outweigh any arguments that automation isn’t awesome. It’s downright miraculous that one relentlessly energetic machine can outperform dozens of human workers with 100% precision.
On the flip side, this anxiety-inducing question plagues us: is AI vying for my job?
When it comes to AI-replacing-jobs statistics, plethora is an understatement. The small sampling below was compiled from two consumer-oriented online tech information sources.
TechJury:
Economic forecasts like these ones paint the same picture:
Now, the question being asked these days: what are the jobs that AI will replace? A Google search will inundate you with scores of informative, newly posted articles. Predictions are fairly consistent, and in most instances, AI is either already implemented to some extent or the technology exists for testing.
Regarding Google’s testing of competitive chatbots in early 2023, CNBC reported that ChatGPT could hypothetically get hired as an entry-level coder if interviewed by Google hiring managers, an internal document noted.
Reflecting on discussions with experts and additional research, the following Business Insider list of jobs most vulnerable to AI replacement was published on April 9, 2023.
Paralegals, legal assistants
Significant AI exposure had already occurred in the relatively small legal sector before the latest chatbots were introduced. What these roles have in common with media jobs is the need to consume and synthesize large amounts of information, and make it digestible through a legal brief or opinion.
The global restaurant consultants at Aaron Allen & Associates offer this food for thought on adopting robotic technology.
TechJury’s condensed list of automatable jobs overlapped with others consulted. Those not highlighted elsewhere in this blog chapter include:
It seemed opportune to address what content writers like me, admittedly, are nervous about. How could I not muster up the courage to brave my own initiation into AI? So I timidly turned to ChatGPT for some research assistance for this blog, armed with a few questions. Each chatbot reply — notably concise, well-organized, and superficially informative — took about half a second to appear.
My first ChatGPT question: What jobs are being replaced by AI?
The response is copied verbatim here to illustrate the style and substance quality:
ChatGPT’s Response:
AI has the potential to automate and replace various jobs across different industries. While the specific impact may vary, here are some examples of jobs that are being affected by AI:
It's worth noting that while AI has the potential to automate certain aspects of these jobs, it may also create new job opportunities and lead to the transformation of existing roles as new skills are required to work alongside AI systems.
I couldn’t resist asking Chat GPT about the impact of AI on content writing and journalism — specifically regarding authenticity and ethics.
The chatbot obliged, affirming the usefulness of generative AI writing tools to assist with generating content, fact-checking, and data analysis. Yet, human oversight and editorial judgment remain vital in maintaining the quality, authenticity, and ethical standards of journalism content.
Plagiarism is a valid concern, Chat GPT added. For transparency’s sake, AI-generated content should be disclosed as such and never passed off as a human author’s work. AI tools should be programmed to respect copyright laws and attribute third-party references.
Ethical considerations include potential journalist job losses, and the need to preserve editorial independence, quality, and trust.
Fears about the growing number of current jobs being threatened as AI continues to advance are neither groundless nor impossible to alleviate. It’s a double-edged sword.
Widely cited Goldman Sachs research suggests that significant AI-induced labor market disruptions could affect some 300 million full-time jobs globally. This is offset by significant labor cost savings and new job creation, plus productivity boosts to eventually increase global GDP by 7%.
These are some highlights of the World Economic Forum’s 2023 Future of Jobs Report.
As conveyed in a December 2022 Harvard Business Review post, AI presents opportunities for job creation and different kinds of organizations. “The question isn’t whether AI will be good enough to take on more cognitive tasks but rather how we’ll adapt,” the three co-authors (admittedly assisted by ChatGPT!) affirm.
Hardship and economic pain may be inevitable for some whose jobs are directly impacted and have difficulty adapting, they concede. “However, the genie is not going back into the bottle. The forward march of technology will continue, and we must harness the new capabilities to benefit society.”
Few AI job scenarios devoid of human intelligence and ingenuity are being foreshadowed at this time. Responding to my questions about job loss, ChatGPT noted that its examples merely illustrate how AI is being integrated into various industries and job functions to automate specific tasks, streamline processes, and increase efficiency. “However,” the bot maintained, “it's important to note that AI is still evolving, and there are limitations to its capabilities in fully replacing human expertise and creativity.”
Regarding the question, “as AI advances will humans disappear?” Forbes contributor Charles Simon suggests that concern is misguided, as well as premature.
“Not surprisingly, the prospect of machines capable of actually thinking in the same way as humans do has created the hope that people will finally be freed from routine jobs to do more meaningful work and the abject fear that robots will completely replace us humans.”
Simon contends that our thinking about AI's impact on the workplace will undoubtedly change.
“Rather than focusing on which jobs might next be replaced by AI, we will be thinking about what characteristics make us different from AI and, therefore, irreplaceable,” he says. “Workers will focus increasingly on retraining and upskilling programs that will enable them to handle new technologies.”
Ironically, Simons adds, a recent Oracle study found that 93% of HR leaders and employees in the U.S. would be open to AI-delivered training.
According to the World Economic Forum, the roles where humans can retain their advantage include managing, advising, decision-making, reasoning, communicating, and interacting.
Bill Gates regards ChatGPT as the most important technological advance since the graphical user interface in 1980. Looking mainly through his philanthropic lens in a March 2023 blog post, he envisions ways that AI could help reduce global inequalities relating to healthcare, education, and climate change, while also boosting business productivity.
Experts emphasize that reskilling and upskilling are crucial to prepare for the impending labor market shifts caused by AI. While AI won’t necessarily replace all jobs, it will certainly change the way many jobs are performed.