The future with AI is blue

From Najman Husaini

In the last article, A future without senior employees, we looked at the dangers of not hiring juniors and what that means for seniors in the future.

The question to ask is if juniors are not getting jobs in the sectors they regard as ideal, what should they do instead? The truth is that there are quite a few options, and I will focus on the three most interesting ones.

The classic suggestion is to go for a blue-collar job such as plumber, electrician or firefighter. There is some merit to this.

They are engaged in highly complex tasks that have yet to be automated, but millions of dollars are being invested into changing this fact. Fortunately, these companies are still a few years from a practical demo.

However, if the future leads us all to blue collar work, the attractive salaries we see today will drop. It is a simple question of supply and demand — there are only so many toilets to fix, and houses to build.

If you have a genuine interest in blue collar work, best to start now.

Another area that may be of interest to you is personal branding. It is wide-ranging, covering everything from writing and handcrafting to video games development, movie-making and cooking.

Many people buy books because they like the author, so even if there are hundreds of AI-generated titles available, they will still buy Andy Weir novels because they like him.

Tourists will still fly all the way to Bali and buy handcrafted souvenirs made by the locals.

On Steam, the largest online video games store, there are curators who check if a game contains AI generated content because there are swathes of fans who strongly dislike AI. The glaring issue here is that it relies on customers to perceive the difference.

I have, on occasion, listened to music that I didn’t realise was AI generated until an hour in.

Tourists unknowingly buy souvenirs mass produced in China.

Authors can still generate segments of their work using AI.

If you intend to start a personal brand, make sure you post videos of yourself working, and explain your steps. Tell people what it is like for a human to do the work instead of AI.

This is why there is a rise in vlogs about things people thought were boring, like blacksmithing or shoemaking. There are people who want to see human labour over things we have automated.

Keep it entertaining and educational, and you’ll do well.

If you take this idea further, you enter the realm of celebrities and influencers.

Sure, there are AI influencers being made right now. However, there is one thing you can do that they can’t: shake the hands of your fans.

Interact with your audience in the real world. Go to restaurants and take selfies with people who recognise you. These are wins over artificial content.

Actors do this all the time. They hold press conferences, attend red carpet events, and meet-and-greets.

Your personal image, should you develop it well, is something that can make you money even in the AI era.

Not good at acting? People love athletes too! Just make sure you’re actually good at a sport. Play an instrument? Become world class. Good at dancing? Start a K-pop band. If you’re really good at something, don’t show your talent for free.

At the end of the day, there still are jobs that cannot be replaced by AI.

If you are really worried about your job security, start doing some research about what else you can do. What’s important is to not make any rash decisions about your current job, such as handing in your resignation right after reading this article.

Besides, I’ve been dancing around this uncertainty over the actual timeline on AI. Worry not, as I will be discussing the technology that drives the AI boom today, LLMs powered by GPTs, and what researchers are looking at as an alternative.

Next up: Why researchers are looking past GPTs

Stay tuned.

Najman Husaini is an FMT reader.

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of FMT.