AI has been democratized, but only few know how to use it

Digital Transformation was put on steroids during Covid19. As organizations transformed, large swathe of tasks was automated, and the inevitable fallout was loss of jobs. If you take a close look at the data in the accompanying chart there’s a massive spike in job losses in Q1 of 2023 compared with Q1 of 2022. It’s striking to note that layoffs in the first 100 days of 2023 have surpassed the number of layoffs for entire 2022. While we are quick to point at the tsunami of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) as the major force behind the layoffs, the real reason could be the pandemic-fuelled digital transformation.

This was just the curtain raiser; the impact of GenAI is yet to be felt. A recent report from Goldman Sachs warned that as many as 300 million full-time jobs around the world could be automated in some way by the newest wave of artificial intelligence that has spawned platforms like ChatGPT, according to Goldman Sachs economists. But the reality is no one knows exactly how many jobs will be lost. Concurrently, however, global talent shortages have reached a 16-year high, as 75% of employers can’t find the talent they need with the right blend of technical and soft skills.

While it is easy to generalize that we must master new skills to stay relevant, it is extremely difficult to point out exactly what those skill will be that will see us survive the current avalanche of automation. White collar and creative jobs will take a biggest hir. From lawyers, accountants, to content creators, creative professionals, and even analysts will find themselves being made redundant as Generative AI takes over these tasks.

It is interesting to note certain trends that points to future employment. Resume Builder, a professional resume creating portal,?found that 40% of companies are hiring contractors to replace laid off workers, while?human talent firm, Mercer?reported that 60% of executives say they will substantially replace full time employees with independent workers in the next three years.

What we must understand that humanity is at the cusp of another revolution that is as big as the Internet or the steam locomotive if we go back to the First Industrial Revolution. In the last three months we access to AI has been democratized, but the ability to utilize it in a smart way has become the essence of expertise and intellectual competence. To survive and thrive in this new world we must improve our learnability to use Generative AI to significantly improve the quality of our creativity and productivity. The same tools are available to everyone, the difference will be between those who know about it, and those who know how to use it.