We live in an age of uncertainty and concern. We don't know exactly when and how much intelligence artificial (AI) will affect the world of work, but it is clear that the impact will be significant, and perhaps sooner than we think. This is what it reminds us of Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, an expert on the subject as well as one of the most in the spotlight tech figures of the last period.
Sam Altman is clear that “there are jobs that are about to disappear” because of AI. But which ones?
The impact will be inevitable. In a recent interview with The Atlantic, Altman explained that many AI professionals tend to minimize the effect of the AI revolution, claiming that it will only complement and replace no one. Altman, however, is much more direct and says some jobs will disappear. It's a fact.
The million dollar question is, of course, which sectors and professions will be most affected. In March of 2023, several researchers from OpenAI and the University of Pennsylvania have published a study that attempted to provide a preliminary answer to this question. The answers weren't particularly clear, but it seemed that i translators and interpreters would be more affected than other professionals, such as writers or investigative professionals.
Read also: Rules on artificial intelligence threaten Europe's competitiveness and technological sovereignty
It is difficult to predict which professions will not be affected. In the same month, Ed Gelten, professor of information technology at Princeton, published another similar study. According to his data, the most affected professions would be lawyers, professors, judges or financial managers, for example. As in the previous case, the impact seems to extend to almost all sectors, making it difficult to predict which professions will be immune from this theoretical revolution in the world of work.
Although the impact will exist and some professions, according to Altman, will disappear, the CEO of OpenAI also explains how this change in our world will be for the better. "I don't think we want to go back” because, although some professions will die, much better jobs will arise as a result of this revolution. Altman explains that professors, for example, may be safer because people will always prefer to be taught by a human.
While we have experienced other very important revolutions that have affected the world of work, the changes have been slow to manifest. For Altman, the changes proposed by the AI will happen “more quickly than in the past”. It is probable (as has been the case in the past) that although some jobs will be destroyed, many new ones will arise to provide us with the new things we will need or want in the future.
