AI Revolution: The Future of Tech Jobs and The Rise of Automation
Tarry Singh
CEO, Visiting Prof. AI, Board Director & AI Researcher @ Real AI Inc. & DK AI Lab | Simplifying AI for Enterprises
A $6 Trillion Opportunity: But for Whom – Robots?
The evolution of AI tools presents a $6 trillion opportunity across various sectors, including advertising, e-commerce, travel, the shared economy, and the cloud. These industries are poised to benefit from the ability of AI to digitize untapped offline spending.
In advertising, AI and large language models can help target customers more effectively, leading to better search engine results, higher social media engagement, and increased sales from ad units. In e-commerce, AI can improve the shopping experience, reduce costs for retailers, and optimize logistics networks. The travel industry can capitalize on AI-driven suggestions for research, planning, and personalized itineraries, leading to higher customer conversion and repeat use.
The shared economy, particularly ridesharing and food delivery, can benefit from AI-based improvements in data use, better matching drivers with riders and food purveyors with consumers. Additionally, AI-enabled autonomous driving and delivery could lower costs in the future. Lastly, the public cloud sector is expected to see accelerated growth driven by AI demand, with AI spending on the public cloud projected to reach $328 billion in 2025.
These high-tech jobs are definitely not coming back
As tech giants such as Meta, Microsoft, and Salesforce cut thousands of jobs in pursuit of efficiency and higher profit margins, the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) is threatening to make many of those jobs extinct.
With more than 250,000 tech workers laid off since the start of 2022 and a 50% decline in software-development job postings, the landscape for tech workers and those seeking to work in the industry is changing rapidly.
50% decline!!! ??
Recent analysis from Morgan Stanley, led by Brian Nowak, highlights the emergence of "AI-based productivity drivers" that are likely to transform the way companies hire and operate. AI-assisted coding tools, for example, have the potential to make engineers more productive, while AI-based sales tools could reduce the need for large sales teams. While the Morgan Stanley note does not suggest that AI will necessarily eliminate tech jobs, it does emphasize that the spread of AI-powered tools and workflows will slow or stop future growth in head count.
The implications of this trend for tech workers and those hoping to work in the industry are significant. As automation continues to advance, even software engineers, once considered impervious to job displacement, are beginning to feel threatened. With major companies like Google and Meta adopting automation strategies to find more efficient ways of operating, the traditional tech job market is becoming more uncertain.
What does this mean for the future of tech workers? As companies shift their focus to efficiency and productivity, those with skills in AI and automation may find themselves in high demand. However, the overall reduction in head count growth may mean fewer opportunities for newcomers to the industry, as well as for those who have lost their jobs due to recent layoffs.
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With the rise of AI and automation, it's crucial for tech workers to stay adaptable and continue learning new skills to remain competitive in this rapidly changing industry. While the future may be uncertain, one thing is clear: the tech job market will never be the same again.
So what should the upcoming software developers and coders do?
The release of ChatGPT in November amazed many with its ability to write rap lyrics, cover letters, and high-school English essays. However, software developer Adam Hughes was captivated by the AI's potential for writing code. He tested ChatGPT by asking it to program a modified tic-tac-toe game and answer coding questions typical of job interviews. Hughes was stunned by the quality of the code produced by ChatGPT, which led him to question the future of his career and the programming profession.
Coding has long been considered a safe occupation, immune to the technological advancements that threaten other jobs. However, many coders are now expressing concerns about the rise of generative AI, which could automate their work. A study by OpenAI researchers found that 19% of workers have jobs where at least half their tasks could be completed by AI, and computer programming is particularly at risk. The study also revealed that jobs requiring more education and offering higher salaries were most vulnerable.
Tech companies have been quick to adopt generative AI to accelerate programming. Amazon has developed its own AI coding assistant, CodeWhisperer, while Google is encouraging developers to experiment with new coding features in Bard, a ChatGPT competitor. With the rapid deployment of AI in the tech industry, the number of engineers needed in the future may significantly decrease, altering the landscape of coding as we know it.
Conclusion
Despite the potential disruption caused by AI, some optimists argue that the demand for coding will continue to grow, employing both humans and AI. They suggest that human coders may shift their focus to tasks that AI cannot do, similar to how bank tellers adapted after the introduction of ATMs. However, even in the best-case scenario, the transition to an AI-driven future will likely be challenging, with some coders unable to adapt and others forced to change their roles.
AI research has primarily focused on replacing human labor rather than empowering it. This has led to questions about whether AI is being used to address the most pressing issues in society. For now, the best course of action for coders is to study new technology and hone skills that are less likely to be replaced by AI.
As AI continues to advance, it is crucial to consider how it will impact our lives and the workforce and shape the future we want.
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Top Voice | Automation & AI Expert & Advisor | CEO & Co-Founder | Speaker | Author | Influencer | Delivered over $100M P&L Impact to clients
11 个月I love this - fully OG approved !
A passionate Human Resource’s professional, executive and life coach with a focus on People & Organisational development, Learning & Coaching
1 年Wow Tarry, this is an inspiring post! I am so motivated to dive deep into the tools and techniques that will help me stay on top of my game in this ever-changing tech world. #TechJobs #FutureOfWork
CEO, Visiting Prof. AI, Board Director & AI Researcher @ Real AI Inc. & DK AI Lab | Simplifying AI for Enterprises
1 年More layoffs have started already. AWS, Dropbox … https://www.theverge.com/2023/4/27/23700629/dropbox-laying-off-500-people-pivoting-ai
Management Consultant, Executive MBA, Senior Enterprise Architect, Data Science, Digital Strategy and Innovation, Product Management
1 年Great summary Tarry Singh Adding a key point though - all code that ChatGPT is able to generate is not created by ChatGPT, but the hundreds of thousands of real software engineers. ChatGPT learned of this during its training based on the XXXL corpus of data fed from internet sites (Stackoverflow, Reddit, GitHUB, etc.). If something new has been created and posted after mid 2021 ChatGPT will not be able to generate it. It is a LLM. No creativeness here.
Senior Director / Innovation & Strategy at Capgemini Invent
1 年Great insights Tarry Singh