Brave new world: will artificial intelligence take over our jobs?
The use of generative AI in businesses could drive a $US7 trillion increase in global GDP in 10 years, a report says. But the cost could be 300 million jobs.
Sweeping changes to the global economy are predicted, with businesses increasingly harnessing the potential of artificial intelligence.
Although AI has been in use for a few years, it remained confined to narrow, task-focused parts of production processes, until generative artificial intelligence became a must-have capability for businesses this year. The trigger was the release late last year of chatGPT, a chatbot developed by a research lab OpenAI, using the ability of machines to learn from content fed into them and generate new content in response to questions asked.
Since then, generative AI has taken a quantum leap, with many companies developing their own versions of chatGPT-like models. Google’s Bard is an example. DALL. E, developed by OpenAI, can generate images from their descriptions.
The use of generative AI in businesses could drive a $US7 trillion increase in global GDP in 10 years, according to a report from Goldman Sachs. In its estimate, the total addressable market for generative AI software is likely to be $US150bn, compared with $US685bn for the global software industry. It could expose the equivalent of 300 million full-time jobs to automation, the Goldman Sachs report says, reminding us that more than 85 per cent of employment growth in the past 80 years originated from technological developments, and therefore, we can expect jobs growth simultaneously.
The workplace is poised to change forever. As Ernest Hemingway wrote in the novel, The Sun Also Rises, about how bankruptcy happens: “Gradually, and then suddenly.”
“Generative AI marks a tipping point for AI,” says a McKinsey report, Technology Trends Outlook 2023. “Unlike previous AI, it can enable the creation of new, unstructured content – such as text, audio, video, images, code, simulations, and even protein sequences or consumer journeys – based on information it learns from similar formats of unstructured data.”
As a test of generative AI’s capabilities, The Australian asked Google’s Bard to demonstrate its research ability to answer some questions about what could be in store for human jobs.
What are the uses of generative AI for businesses?
Bard: Generative AI has a wide range of potential uses for businesses, including:
● Personalising customer experiences: Generative AI can be used to create personalised marketing campaigns, product recommendations, and customer service interactions. This can help businesses to improve customer satisfaction and loyalty.
● Creating new products and services: Generative AI can be used to brainstorm new product ideas, design new products, and even generate the code for new software applications. This can help businesses to innovate and stay ahead of the competition.
● Automating tasks: Generative AI can be used to automate tasks that are currently done by humans, such as writing content, generating images, or creating music. This can help businesses to save time and money.
● Making predictions: Generative AI can be used to make predictions about future events, such as customer demand, market trends, or the likelihood of a customer taking a certain action. This can help businesses to make better decisions and improve their bottom line.
What are the risks in relying on generative AI? What are its advantages and disadvantages?
Here are some risks in relying on generative AI, as well as its advantages and disadvantages:
Advantages:
● Generative AI can create new content that is more creative and engaging than content created by humans.
● It can automate tasks that are currently done by humans, which can save time and money.
● It can make predictions about future events, which can help businesses to make better decisions.
Disadvantages:
● Generative AI can be biased, depending on the data it is trained on.
● It can be used to create fake content, such as deepfakes, which can be used to spread misinformation.
It is still a relatively new techno logy, so there are risks associated with its security and reliability.
Risks:
● Bias: Generative AI models can be biased, depending on the data they are trained on. This can lead to the creation of content that is discriminatory or offensive.
● Misinformation: Generative AI can be used to create fake content, such as deepfakes, which can be used to spread misinformation. This can have a negative impact on society and democracy.
● Security: Generative AI models can be vulnerable to security attacks. This could allow malicious actors to create fake content or steal sensitive data.
● Summary: Generative AI is a powerful tool that has the potential to be used for good or evil. It is important to be aware of the risks associated with this technology and to take steps to mitigate them.
How far will artificial intelligence take over human jobs? What will be the extent of its impact on jobs?
The extent to which artificial intelligence will take over human jobs is a complex and uncertain question. There are many factors that will influence the answer, including the rate of technological progress, the way that AI is developed and deployed, and the policies that are put in place to regulate AI. Some experts believe that AI will eventually replace a significant number of human jobs, particularly in the areas of customer service, manufacturing, and transportation. Others believe that AI will create more jobs than it displaces, as new industries and businesses emerge that are enabled by AI.
It is likely that the impact of AI on jobs will be unevenly distributed. Some jobs will be more easily automated than others, and some workers will be more easily displaced than others. Workers who are less educated and have fewer skills are likely to be more vulnerable to job loss due to AI.
The impact of AI on jobs will also depend on how it is used. If AI is used to automate tasks that are currently done by humans, it could lead to job losses. However, if AI is used to augment human capabilities, it could lead to new jobs and higher productivity.
Overall, the impact of AI on jobs is difficult to predict. However, it is clear that AI will have a significant impact on the way that we work. It is important to start thinking about how we can prepare for this change and ensure that everyone benefits from the opportunities that AI creates.
Can you write a limerick on the risk of relying on generative AI?
There once was a language model quite new,
That could generate text, quite true.
But it turned out to be,
Quite a dangerous spree,
For it could write things that were quite untrue.
