“What jobs won’t be replaced by AI?”
Every time I hear this question, I consider for a second that artificial intelligence will dominate every industry.
But only for a second.
AI has taken control over the media, schools and our minds — basically every aspect of our lives. Parents, teachers and industry experts are warning of the new dystopian reality in which AI will take over dozens of industries over the next 20 years.
The media, especially, loves to cover scenarios depicting the new AI world, like "Interested in data science? Well forget it. AI can Excel spreadsheet cartwheels around you.”
Imagine you’re taking a computer science class to prepare for your dream career in data science, but every media outlet says that job won’t exist.
I hate to be the cliche journalist that finds a way to criticize the latest invention, but the reality behind AI’s tangible impact is a lot less interesting than the media wants to make it. It's more likely that I’ll be retired before AI rapidly replaces finance bros.
AI has yet to prove that it can fulfill its destiny of taking over every industry. For now, AI continues to inhale energy and investment, while having no profitability and abilities past regurgitating information.
Trillions of dollars have gone into AI development, but revenue reports are nowhere to be seen, according to Business Insider.
A Massachusetts Institute of Technology study found that 95% of companies received zero percent returns on their investments, with no measurable profit and loss impact, according to Axios.
So, AI isn’t making money and isn’t living up to expectations. Gotcha. It makes so much sense that AI's impact is supposed to be rapidly approaching while it still remains unprofitable.
Thanks to Big Tech and AI companies, the media is publishing clickbait horror headlines, like The Big AI job swap, which are persuading consumers to “hold onto their jobs, because AI is taking them over.”
But much of that AI frenzy hasn’t matched up with its capabilities to date.
At the World Economic Forum, Citadel Securities Founder and CEO Ken Griffin said that AI companies are trying to convince the public that it justifies this level of spending, according to Business Insider.
"Is it hype? Of course," Griffin said. "You're not going to generate this kind of [investment] unless you're going to make a promise you're going to profoundly change the world."
According to Griffin, AI companies are marketing for investment without any proof of the results they promised. AI is supposed to sweep in and snag a bunch of jobs, yet it still can't do anything more than spit out a bunch of information.
The reality remains that AI is caught at a crossroads, trying to move past just regurgitating data and chowing on power.
Don’t let the fear of an AI takeover prevent you from pursuing the career of your dreams.
Because, until revenue and innovative software capabilities line up with the timeline that the media is pushing, AI will continue to be a distant problem rather than a current one.
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