How does AI "augment" versus "replace" jobs?

Will AI “replace” or “augment” tech jobs?

With the rapid adoption of AI, some pessimists argue that the quantity of jobs in computer science will decrease. This claim is not backed by facts. The reality is that human intelligence will become increasingly MORE important in computer science fields. Furthermore, AI will augment the work that technologists do, making them more productive. 

Software Development

Take, for example, software development. “Back in the day,” programmers had to search through manuals and scan the internet for code samples and solutions for things they were trying to accomplish. AI now makes those searches much easier and faster, enabling today’s programmers to be more productive. 

However, AI is not the best way to produce new and innovative software solutions. Rather, AI learns from code that humans have already written. So, AI simply becomes a rapid means of collecting the raw building blocks that teams of thoughtful, creative, and highly skilled human coders will assemble in meaningful ways. Human intelligence is required to harness the power of artificial intelligence. 

Therefore, choosing an education and a career in computer science is still very much worth your time. The technology jobs of tomorrow will harness AI in much the same way that jobs of the late ‘90s harnessed the internet.  

According to a recent survey by Slashdata.co, 71% of respondents say that AI plays a role in their work as software developers. Exactly what kind of role? A quarter are adding AI functionality to their applications under development. Thirteen percent are creating AI models. A whopping 59% use AI tools for workflows and code generation.  

Security of AI

In a recent interview that the CCoE conducted with Bret Arsenault, Chief Cybersecurity Advisor to Microsoft, he states, “we are seeing people code 30% faster now with AI assistance. But how can we keep up with the cybersecurity needs of so much new code? DevSecOps people are needed who understand the whole ecosystem.” 

DevSecOps is a tactical and operational methodology that seeks to unify development and operations with security as the continuous force that propels every step. But now, as AI is rapidly adopted, DevSecOps must evolve even faster.   

Highly skilled DevSecOps people will understand:

• How AI tools are used in the development of software
• How AI features are offered to the consumers of that software
• How AI tools are used in the management and protection of company data

Creative human intelligence is required to analyze every aspect of potential threats, imagine the scenarios, think like a hacker, and plan accordingly.  Planning for the protection of their own company data as well as their consumers. 

Using critical thinking, technologists will analyze AI through the lens of emotional intelligence.  When adopting AI, they will ask: What is the objective? What are the benefits compared to potential risks? Does our staff have the skills to use AI safely? How can we legally and ethically gain consumer consent for using their personal data in our AI-powered systems? 

AI should never be adopted faster than security mechanisms can keep pace. You must plan for laws that haven’t been finalized yet, and workers must be trained to use AI responsibly. 

How AI Impacts Careers of Tomorrow

In this 2023 white paper by the World Economic Forum, “Jobs of Tomorrow: Large Language Models and Jobs,” the careers that will decline as they are replaced by AI fall under the category of clerical work. Most other industries stand to benefit from AI by augmenting what employees do and assisting workers to be more productive. 

Job categories with the highest growth potential AND that are also expected to benefit the most from AI augmentation are in the families of technologists, engineers and analysts. (See section 2.2 of the white paper.) Jobs with the least potential to decline due to replacement by AI include higher education teachers and career counsellors. In fact, these careers are predicted to grow by 10 percent as the need for AI training increases. 

Entirely New Job Types

Emerging jobs, according to the white paper, can be grouped as follows: 

• AI Model and Prompt Engineers
• Interface and Interaction Designers
• AI Content Creators
• Data Curators and LLM Trainers
• Ethics and Governance Specialists

Summary

The bottom-line impact on jobs: Artificial Intelligence is a disruptive technology that changes how many industries work. Just like other time-saving automations of the past, it will eliminate some jobs. But that “headcount”, so to speak, can be reskilled and shifted. So, individuals who are selecting a new career should seriously consider how AI is used in that industry and select a college program that covers this topic.