Will Artificial Intelligence Pose a Threat to Human Jobs in the Age of AI?

Concerns about job security have arisen with the rise of generative artificial intelligence (AI) in the workplace. Despite these concerns, a new study shows that executives are optimistic about this change and believe that human roles will remain at the core of the workplace.

The study, conducted by Economist Impact and commissioned by Google Workspace, surveyed 900 executives from four regions and seven industries between April and May 2023 to understand their views on the new era of flexible work, including emerging technologies like generative AI.

Among the 900 executives surveyed, 86% agreed that AI can eliminate mundane tasks and thereby enhance innovation and creativity.

Furthermore, 84% of executives believed that AI can provide more flexibility for workers engaged in physical labor, such as frontline workers.

For example, jobs that currently require physical presence, such as operating factory production lines, may evolve into remote roles as workers can remotely operate and supervise AI-powered robots and sensor devices to complete tasks.

In such use cases, generative AI does not replace the role of workers but transforms the tasks into less physically demanding and more flexible forms.

As a result, 86% of executives believe that humans will continue to be at the center of the workplace, with AI playing a supporting role, and 84% of executives believe that the quality of work will improve as a result.

"I think humans will still be at the center, with AI tools serving as means for quality checks and productivity enhancement," said Ben Armstrong, Executive Director of the MIT Industrial Performance Center.

However, the future described in the above use case requires more than just technological investment.

Successfully achieving this role transformation requires appropriate retraining and upskilling of the workforce to enable these workers to harness the power of AI and other emerging technologies.

"As AI becomes more prevalent, the demand for skill development will continue to increase," said Anita Woolley, Professor at the Tepper School of Business, Carnegie Mellon University. "Organizations need employees with specialized skills to fully leverage the AI capabilities that facilitate flexible work."

Even in cases involving retraining, workers will retain their jobs and play a crucial role in the successful implementation of AI.