Artificial intelligence (AI) will increase the need for new worker profiles that combine existing skills with the ability to use AI systems. Jobs that require creativity, decision-making and collaboration with AI assistants will become dominant, and the greatest demand will be for workers who "add" the productive use of AI mechanisms to already existing skills.
Thus, the executive director of the company "ITAS", which deals with software development and application of AI in various business segments, Ivan Boskovic for "Vijesti" he comments on the potential of artificial intelligence in creating new jobs.
The World Economic Forum, a non-profit organization based in Geneva, states in a 2020 analysis that AI will "eat" 85 million jobs, but also create 97 million new ones.
Bošković explains that some economic sectors are more exposed to automation and process optimization, which opens up the possibility of faster application of advanced technologies such as AI and large language models (LLM).
LLMs are a type of algorithm called deep learning that processes and generates human-like text. These models are trained on massive datasets containing texts from various sources, such as books, articles, websites, customer feedback, social media posts, product reviews…
The primary goal of LLM is to understand and predict patterns in human language, enabling it to generate clear and contextually appropriate text.
In mid-October, "Vijesti" published a questionnaire on its portal, the aim of which was to get the public's impression of the potential of AI to shape new jobs, their opinion on future cooperation with this technology, as well as what obstacles AI needs to overcome in order to its integration into the economic system was possible.
Although it is not a representative sample, the largest number of responses conveys the same message - AI could be a "colleague" for many in the near future, but the fear that it will completely replace people is still at a high level.
AI in banking, tourism, energy...
Bošković estimates that, in Montenegro, the sectors with the greatest potential for creating new jobs due to the application of AI are banking and insurance, legal services, retail, tourism, energy, healthcare, education and information technology (IT).
"AI brings evident improvements in areas such as customer support, market analytics, smart energy infrastructure, text processing and analysis, and even medical diagnostics," says Bošković for "Vijesti".
As an example, he cites tourism, a sector on which the gross domestic product (GDP) of Montenegro largely depends.
“AI could help personalize services and optimize resources, while in retail it could improve inventory management and pricing. These sectors could open new jobs for people who would deal with data management, development of AI solutions and digital transformation of business", says the interlocutor.
The "Vijesti" questionnaire received 158 responses, and 125 people who filled it in stated that they were employed. There were 11 employers, eight unemployed, 11 pensioners, and five students.
Out of 125 employees, most of them worked in the state administration - 27. There were 16 workers in the health sector, 15 in the economic sector, and 14 in the trade sector.
There were 11 employees each in the media-cultural and educational sectors, 10 of those who filled out the questionnaire were engaged in tourism, nine in craftsmanship, and eight in catering. The option "something else" was circled by 46 people.
"Routine" jobs will be a thing of the past
When asked what tasks they would leave AI to do for them, those who filled out the "Vijesti" questionnaire had different answers.
"To maintain the cleanliness of the cities", "Scheduling, sending formal emails", "Booking accounts", "Research on a topic, doing data comparison, statistical data...", "Administrative financial", "Technical nature", "Polite emails. Accompanying texts. Retelling huge and less relevant documents. Making liners for further work on reports".
Bošković indicates that AI will significantly change the labor market through the automation of routine tasks and the creation of new occupations in the technological and analytical sectors.
“It will change the description of many of the existing jobs and affect how we design new ones. In order to remain competitive, many companies will have to rethink their strategies, but that is a separate topic," he explains.
Writer and futurist Bernard Mar for "Forbes" magazine, it is written that the impact of artificial intelligence on workplaces will have two forms - automation and augmentation.
Simple, routine tasks, such as data entry or solving basic user queries, will be largely automated.
One of the leading American consulting firms "McKinsey" predicts that up to 45 percent of work activities can be automated in this way.
Mar explains that understanding the balance between automation and augmentation is key to understanding the impact of AI.
"Getting this balance right leads to more efficient work processes, reducing the time people have to spend on manual, repetitive tasks and freeing them up to devote more time to creativity and solving complex problems," writes Mar.
Every revolution is challenging
Bošković told "Vijesti" that every technological revolution, to a greater or lesser extent, brought challenges.
"Generative artificial intelligence, being the most sophisticated technology devised by man, brings significantly more complex challenges. "From undermining the concept of establishing authenticity, truth, establishing trust, copyright, endangering privacy through redefining dominant economic models, all the way to abuse in the military industry," he said.
"How modern leaders will respond to these challenges remains to be seen. In the context of doing everyday work, we can be pretty sure that a human who skillfully uses AI systems will produce more value than what AI alone can produce without a human," he adds.
Those who filled out the questionnaire, when asked what are the challenges or obstacles that AI needs to overcome in order to be useful in their work, give different examples, from being better informed and keeping data secure, to emulating human emotions and behavior.
"It should have authoritative true data, without generic conclusions, to stick to verified and factual news from the scene", "To better interpret the questions asked and to become more personalized", "To have more information about the current customs legislation in Montenegro" , "It is important to take care of copyright, reliability of information, sources. Do not use the content integrally, but as a source of ideas for the direction of thinking", "AI and ML are tools that become more precise and efficient after 'learning' on a large amount of data. The challenges would be collecting a large amount of data to 'learn' the algorithm, but also people - skeptics of these technologies".
These were some of the answers that "Vijesti" received.
Two scenarios and big changes
Bernard Mar writes for "Forbes" that there are optimistic and pessimistic scenarios about how the impact of artificial intelligence on workplaces could be reflected in society.
“In one possible scenario, artificial intelligence takes over all the mundane, routine and boring jobs, freeing people to engage in the creative, fulfilling and ultimately rewarding aspects of their work. This leads to a society where we are all happier, more productive and more prosperous," says Mar.
Yet in another scenario, Mar explains, those whose jobs are replaced by AI find it difficult to transition into fulfilling roles, ultimately leading to unemployment or underemployment.
"It could worsen existing inequalities, burden social support systems and disrupt society in many unpleasant ways," he points out.
He estimates that in reality the outcome will probably be somewhere between these two extremes.
“If companies consider the social implications of widespread automation, rather than focusing only on potential efficiency gains, the adverse effects are more likely to be mitigated. This will require assessing the likely impact of AI and automation on the workforce, as well as putting in place measures to help workers transition to the more complex, human-focused roles that will be required," Marr explains, adding that governments will also have a role to play in this, with with the obligation to create legislative frameworks and policies that will support workers during the transition to an economy driven by artificial intelligence.
Mar's opinion about the two different scenarios is shared by some who filled out the questionnaire.
From the answers to the question of how they think AI will change the labor market in the next 10 years, it follows that the coming decade will be full of big changes.
Some think that AI could be the solution to a pressing problem in society, such as partisan employment, while others believe that artificial intelligence poses the threat of increased unemployment rates.
"They will take over a lot of standard, boring jobs, around paperwork", "Many will lose their jobs", "I think they will change the labor market and replace the jobs of translators, presenters, bank and counter clerks", "They will reduce the number of workers, contribute to new inventions"; "It will speed up some processes, and we will see if it will affect employment"; "AI will greatly change every area of human life, including the labor market. It is necessary to introduce strict controls to prevent abuses", "It is already changing, but it is very difficult to measure. What happens is that what, for example, 10 programmers could produce in 10 days, if you arm yourself enough with all the tools, it is possible to achieve one programmer in one day", "They will abolish political recruitment, we will not have to look at people who are not trained to that job, and they work for two hours a day, arrogant, impudent and ill-mannered", read some of the answers...
Bošković: An opportunity for young people in Montenegro
Ivan Bošković believes that AI could help create jobs that would encourage young people to stay in Montenegro.
However, in order for this to happen, Bošković says that several prerequisites must first be met, which would then ensure that artificial intelligence is the driver of the economy.
"First of all, we urgently need a national strategy for AI that would clearly define how AI will be used in different sectors of the economy, with an emphasis on encouraging innovation and creating new jobs. The strategy should include goals for the development of technological infrastructure, legal regulation for AI, and ways to encourage investment in AI research and development," the interlocutor points out.
He points out that in addition to a clear strategy and legal framework, young people must also prepare for the labor market in which AI plays a central role.
"This means the introduction of specialized courses and programs in the field of artificial intelligence, data processing, machine learning and related fields. These programs must be available at all levels of education, including universities, high schools, but also through centers for training and continuing education of adults," states Bošković.
He says that the development of the AI industry requires technological infrastructure - from fast, stable and cheap internet connections, to the availability of hardware and data for training AI systems.
"A small country like ours must cooperate with other countries and with international technology giants in order to provide tools and resources for local companies and research institutes. I don't see any other way in which our country would be attractive for young talents in the time to come", Bošković assessed.
A solution to unemployment or a new problem
Many of the “new” jobs will be closely related to artificial intelligence, such as AI specialist or AI engineer, but a big part of the change will be working with AI systems in jobs that are already established in society.
Part of those who filled out the questionnaire are of the opinion that artificial intelligence could be of great help in solving the problem of unemployment, while some believe that it will take away more jobs than it will create.
"Yes, IT jobs, secretaries to replace, counter workers, bankers..."; "Perhaps the automation of some jobs in the hotel", "It will eliminate some jobs, but I'm sure that along the way new ones will also appear", "Possibly, not specific jobs, but it can significantly change the way of working", "Yes. He could open a job as a supervisor and editor checking the credibility of news and photos," "Probably. Someone needs to maintain the AI", "He could become a teacher for certain disciplines or even a great teaching assistant. It could also perform administrative tasks and generate reports”, “Yes. All jobs in the legal sector that strive for standardization", "Yes. Controllers specialized in AI fraud protection", "Absolutely. Businesses that are being created on a large scale in other countries - asset management centers, for example", "It will not and cannot be created, and in my business in particular it can cause harm to humanity", "Of course yes. There will be no more bankers to assess credit risk, it will be done by AI. All financial decisions will be made by AI", were some of the answers...
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