While the developments in technology like artificial intelligence has brought great excitement, it has also caused some great distress as more people find themselves questioning whether their jobs are in jeopardy.
AI in the form of ChatGPT and similar platforms have arrived in South Africa and the newly accessible technology has started making waves in workplaces, according to Advaita Naidoo, Africa MD at Jack Hammer Global.
Advaita said that companies are still considering how they can harness AI to improve productivity and their bottom line and there is real concern among employees about what this new development might mean for their career prospects.
Rajan Naidoo, Managing Director of EduPower Skills Academy said that AI operates much faster than a human and is able to sift through quantities of data that would be impossible for a human, as well as return value at a lower cost and more reliably.
Rajan said that mundane, routine and repeatable functions are certainly lost to human beings and AI will out-compete them every time which will lead to job losses and human obsolescence.
“It is true that, just like with new technologies in the past, AI will most certainly lead to attrition of certain jobs going forward,” Advaita said.
A report by Tech.co called the The Impact of Technology on the Workplace has revealed the types of jobs and tasks that are and are not being replaced by AI.
According to the research by Tech.co, writing (63%), design (51%), and language translation (50%) represent tasks where AI tools have no impact on removing job roles.
However, the research showed that other job roles would not be so lucky.
Supply chain optimisation is the most likely to be replaced by AI, with 72% of businesses admitting to removing some jobs to perform the task.
Research from Tech.co showed that other roles on the list include legal research (65%), financial analysis (64%), and predictive maintenance on fixed assets (65%).
According to Tech.co, other jobs that are vulnerable to AI include: entry-level admin roles; data entry clerks; software engineers and coders; customer service reps; paralegals; graphic designers; bankers and accountants traders; fact-checkers and proofreaders.
To workers who are worried about their jobs being taken over by AI, Advaita has the following advice:
“Ultimately, professionals should approach the AI question not from a position of fear that they will be out-automated, but rather from the position that they should now develop their skillset so that they can incorporate new technology to enhance and augment their professional competitiveness.”
