5 Sectors That Will be Most Affected by Generative AI

Generative AI might be the most impactful technology for people like you and me in the coming years. It’s a game changer because tools like ChatGPT-3 and Dall-E 2 put generative AI in the hands of any end user.?

As the technology continues to develop, it will likely have a broad and far-reaching impact on many areas of society and industry. But which industries will it affect first, and how? Who better to ask than generative AI itself. I prompted ChatGPT and this is what I got:

Generative AI has the potential to impact a wide range of sectors and industries. Some sectors that generative AI may particularly impact include:

1. Media and entertainment: Generative AI may be used to generate new content for films, TV shows, music, and other forms of media. It may also be used to create interactive or immersive experiences for users.
2. Education: Generative AI may be used to create personalized learning materials and experiences, and to automate certain tasks related to education.
3. Advertising: Generative AI may be used to generate new ad copy and creative materials, or to optimize the targeting and placement of ads.
4. Healthcare: Generative AI may be used to generate personalized treatment plans or to analyze large amounts of data to identify trends and patterns that could inform healthcare decision-making.
5. Finance: Generative AI may be used to analyze financial data and generate investment recommendations, or to automate certain tasks related to trading and risk management.

Let’s look at the impact on each of these sectors in more detail. Based on five follow-up questions, ChatGPT gave me this:

Impact of Generative AI on the Media and Entertainment Industry

Generative AI has the potential to significantly impact the media and entertainment industry by enabling the creation of new content at a much faster rate than is possible with human labor alone. Some potential impacts of generative AI on media and entertainment include:

1. The creation of new content: Generative AI may be used to generate new scripts, story ideas, music, or other forms of media. This could lead to the emergence of new forms of entertainment and the expansion of creative possibilities.
2. Changes in the role of creative professionals: Generative AI may change the role of creative professionals such as writers, musicians, and directors, as the technology becomes increasingly capable of generating content on its own. This could lead to new opportunities for collaboration between humans and AI, or it may change the way that creative professionals are compensated and recognized for their work.
3. The democratization of content creation: Generative AI may make it easier and more affordable for individuals to create and share their own content, potentially leading to a more diverse and inclusive media and entertainment industry.
4. Changes in the way that media is consumed: Generative AI may change the way that media is consumed, such as through the use of virtual or augmented reality to display generated content or through the creation of interactive experiences that allow users to shape and influence the content in real-time.

Impact of Generative AI on Education

Generative AI has the potential to significantly impact education, both in terms of the way that students learn and the way that educators teach. Some potential impacts of generative AI on education include:

1. Personalized learning: Generative AI may be able to generate customized learning materials and experiences that are tailored to the needs and interests of individual students. This could lead to more engaging and effective learning experiences.
2. Increased efficiency: Generative AI may be able to automate certain tasks related to education, such as grading assignments or providing feedback on student work. This could lead to increased efficiency and allow educators to spend more time on other tasks.
3. Changes in the role of the teacher: Generative AI may change the role of the teacher, as the technology becomes increasingly capable of providing personalized instruction and feedback to students. This could lead to new opportunities for collaboration between humans and AI, or it may change the way that teachers are trained and compensated.
4. Improved access to education: Generative AI may make it easier and more affordable for individuals to access education, such as through online courses or tutoring services. This could lead to increased access to education for people in underserved or remote areas.

Impact of Generative AI on the Advertising Industry

Generative AI has the potential to significantly impact the advertising industry by enabling the creation of new ad copy and creative materials at a much faster rate than is possible with human labor alone. Some potential impacts of generative AI on advertising include:

1. The creation of new ad copy and creative materials: Generative AI may be used to generate new ad copy, headlines, slogans, and other types of creative materials. This could lead to the development of more effective and engaging ads.
2. Changes in the role of creative professionals: Generative AI may change the role of creative professionals such as copywriters and designers, as the technology becomes increasingly capable of generating ad copy and creative materials on its own. This could lead to new opportunities for collaboration between humans and AI, or it may change the way that creative professionals are compensated and recognized for their work.
3. Improved targeting and placement of ads: Generative AI may be used to analyze large amounts of data to identify trends and patterns that could inform the targeting and placement of ads. This could lead to more effective and efficient ad campaigns.
4. Changes in the way that ads are consumed: Generative AI may change the way that ads are consumed, such as through the use of virtual or augmented reality to display generated ads or through the creation of interactive ads that allow users to shape and influence the content in real-time.

Impact of Generative AI on the Healthcare Industry

Generative AI has the potential to significantly impact the healthcare industry by enabling the analysis of large amounts of data and the generation of personalized treatment plans. Some potential impacts of generative AI on healthcare include:

1. Personalized treatment plans: Generative AI may be used to analyze large amounts of data about a patient's medical history, genetics, and other factors to generate personalized treatment plans. This could lead to more effective and efficient healthcare.
2. Improved diagnosis and prediction: Generative AI may be used to analyze data to identify patterns and trends that could inform the diagnosis of diseases or the prediction of patient outcomes. This could lead to earlier diagnosis and more effective treatments.
3. Changes in the role of healthcare professionals: Generative AI may change the role of healthcare professionals such as doctors and nurses, as the technology becomes increasingly capable of analyzing data and generating treatment plans. This could lead to new opportunities for collaboration between humans and AI, or it may change the way that healthcare professionals are trained and compensated.
4. Increased access to healthcare: Generative AI may make it easier and more affordable for individuals to access healthcare, such as through telemedicine or self-diagnosis tools. This could lead to increased access to healthcare for people in underserved or remote areas.

Impact of Generative AI on the Finance Industry

Generative AI has the potential to significantly impact the finance industry by enabling the analysis of large amounts of data and the generation of investment recommendations. Some potential impacts of generative AI on finance include:

1. Investment recommendations: Generative AI may be used to analyze financial data and generate investment recommendations. This could lead to more effective and efficient investment decision-making.
2. Improved risk management: Generative AI may be used to analyze data to identify patterns and trends that could inform risk management strategies. This could lead to more effective risk management and reduced losses.
3. Changes in the role of finance professionals: Generative AI may change the role of finance professionals such as analysts and traders, as the technology becomes increasingly capable of analyzing data and generating investment recommendations. This could lead to new opportunities for collaboration between humans and AI, or it may change the way that finance professionals are trained and compensated.
4. Increased access to financial services: Generative AI may make it easier and more affordable for individuals to access financial services, such as through online brokers or robo-advisors. This could lead to increased access to financial services for people in underserved or remote areas.

Learnings from using ChatGPT: Bias, (in)Completeness, and (in)Accuracy

Based on my knowledge of the five sectors and what generative AI can do, ChatGPT’s answers make sense. However, this doesn't mean we can blindly trust its answers.

Firstly, I see a strong bias towards the technology’s positive impact. There are no mentions of negative side effects like copyright infringements and fake news. It only describes positive impact and frames possible negative impact as opportunities. For example, the impact on the work of creative professionals is described as: “Generative AI may change the role of creative professionals such as copywriters and designers, as the technology becomes increasingly capable of generating ad copy and creative materials on its own. This could lead to new opportunities for collaboration between humans and AI, or it may change the way that creative professionals are compensated and recognized for their work.” I’m sure not all creative professionals will see this as an opportunity. Early adopters and newcomers to the workforce are most likely to benefit from the disruption of the profession, as they will be most open to new forms of compensation.?

Secondly, it’s incomplete. For example, it mentions “Changes in the way that media is consumed", but it doesn't mention internet-based search engines. Microsoft is supposedly planning to take on Google by incorporating ChatGPT in their Bing search engine, and we see the birth of new chat-based search engines like You.com . For the short term, I expect a significant impact here.

Lastly, as an end user, it’s difficult to assess whether ChatGPT’s answers are accurate as we don't have insight into the data used to train the algorithm, nor how the algorithm generates new text. There are no sources to check. In the case of this article, this is especially complicated as I was asking about the future. There is no way to assess the answers at this point in time, and people’s expectations about the future differ. Although it delivered impressive results, ChatGPT just adds another ‘opinion’.?

Recognising all its shortcomings, I nevertheless find ChatGPT a great source of inspiration for research and writing. I can see (high school) students, academics, bloggers, and journalists using it. Luckily, cases where people blindly copy-paste ChatGPT’s answers and present them as their own can be exposed by future detection tools (see this post for the first of such tools ).

Generative AI raises many new questions, triggering valuable discussions about how, when, and where we find the use of Generative AI appropriate. In short, I would say:

ChatGPT is a non-human technology optimist that forces humans to rethink their relationship with technology.

Time will tell how generative AI will affect industries, our jobs and our lives. As with any new technology, its societal impact is difficult to predict. There will be good and bad things, and the unexpected side effects will likely take us off guard. I noted in my calendar to revisit this article three and five years from today. I will share my observations with you then.

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