Have you ever stopped to ask this introspective question on how Artificial Intelligence might impact your career or organisation? I try to do this often because I have come to realise that a number of businesses will become extinct either because AI will affect them negatively or they fail to proactively anticipate the future.
A McKinsey report after analysing some cases states, “Artificial intelligence impact will most likely be substantial in marketing and sales as well as supply-chain management and manufacturing.”
The same report states that “AI has the potential to create trillions of dollars of value across the economy, if business leaders work to understand what it can and cannot do.”
Looking at this critically, one would wonder how Nigeria’s manufacturing industries would be able to compete with their counterparts abroad who are massively adding AI-powered tools and solutions to their production lines. China, for example, has more or less made AI a major priority, investing heavily so as to ensure the country stays ahead. An increasing number of Chinese factories have resorted to investing billions in robotics and intelligent machines powered by AI. Honestly, I am of the opinion that Nigeria and some other African countries will be on the receiving end as we don’t seem to grasp what is ahead. How would an average African entity that has not invested in AI compete if and when singularity is achieved? It is nearly impossible except for those that are truly prepared for the AI revolution.
A number of studies have argued that AI and robots will take over 50 per cent of human jobs in the next 30 years. This is due to the exponential advancements in robotics, quantum computing and AI. According to a Computer Science Professor at Rice University, Texas, Moshe Vardi, intelligent machines will take over jobs across various fields, such as driving and even bank tellers while robots would replace humans in different professions, and this will immensely affect the landscape of human productivity.
The reality is that across the world, certain functions in various workplaces are facing huge threats and it is all thanks to advancement in technology. More than 30 per cent of humans could lose their jobs in the next few decades, according to various studies. Clerical workers for instance, who perform tedious tasks such as writing reports or working on spreadsheets are getting an easy replacement with software but, what other jobs are under threat? Well, a lot more such as data analysis, diagnosing health conditions, carrying out criminal investigations, writing annual reports, research, receptionists etc.
According to Richard and Daniel Susskind in their study titled, “The Future of the Professions”, professions such as — Finish Reading on the Punch
