>
The AI chatbot ChatGPT has raised fears that artificial intelligence could automate millions of jobs until they don’t exist.
Zak Saidi, creative director and AI lead at creative agency IZSRI, which already uses AI to automate some writing tasks, says the impact of AI will be felt across many industries in the next three years.
He said he already uses ChatGPT to compose written content and other AI tools to grab attention and spot trends on social media.
ChatGPT reached 100 million users just two months after launch; by comparison, it took TikTok nine months to reach the milestone, and it secured a $10 billion investment from Microsoft.
So which jobs are most likely to be replaced by ‘generative AI’? And how soon could it happen?
Writers and bloggers
Copywriters and bloggers could soon be out of a job due to AI tools like ChatGPT, but one expert says the most talented human writers will still be sought after (file photo)
Copywriters, bloggers and online copywriters could be among the first to fall for the AI revolution, Saidi believes.
He says: ‘We work with a lot of copywriters and there’s certainly a lot of talk in the industry about replacing copywriters with AI technology.
“ChatGPT is free, writers are not; we hope more small tech-savvy businesses will turn to ChatGPT and its AI counterparts when generating more content.”
Buzzfeed announced earlier this year that it would use ChatGPT to generate content online.
Tech site CNET faced controversy last month after it was revealed that the site had used AI to generate articles. It was later discovered that some of these articles were riddled with errors.
AI-powered content creation platform Jasper says tens of thousands of customers have already used its software to create ads, blogs and marketing emails.
But the future is not so bleak for highly-skilled copywriters, Saidi said.
We believe that nothing can replace human creativity. In its current form, ChatGPT generates very generic content,” he explained.
“But it’s still a big concern for some copywriters that as this technology develops in its sophistication, at some point many companies will turn to AI to provide their content writing services.”
sales staff
Artificial intelligence will lead to “serious job losses” across the retail sector, Saidi believes.
“As we’ve seen, checkout staff, customer service assistants, and personal shoppers are slowly being replaced by AI bots, powered by the exact same type of AI technology that ChatGPT is powered by. “, said.
Artificial intelligence company Standard AI acquired self-checkout company Skip this year with the aim of creating an ‘autonomous retailer’, to ‘give retailers immediate relief from their work challenges’, the company said.
Saidi says: “In some ways, AI can be said to work to free workers from the most menial tasks, giving them time to take on more administrative and creative roles.”
“But we have to consider that there are so many managers who can run retail stores!”
Software engineers and cybersecurity experts
In addition to producing compelling text in English, ChatGPT can also write computer code in languages like Python.
The demos shown by OpenAI show the ChatGPT debugging code in response to prompts.
ChatGPT’s maker, OpenAI, also produces a different version, Codex, specifically for writing computer code, which Microsoft uses on its GitHub Copilot.
Saidi says that such technology could have an immediate and far-reaching impact on developers, and even cybersecurity experts.
“Now this is where we can start to get a little concerned, even with apps like ChatGPT still in their rudimentary form,” he continued.
‘ChatGPT generates lines of html code without having to think, resolving complex errors in a stream of code infinitely faster than a human.
“This, to some degree, is calling into question the role of support software engineers.
“Although it still takes a human to plan a software development project, ChatGPT can act as a crucial tool for solving broken code and building basic applications, a role previously reserved for junior software engineers.”
OpenAI is currently hiring hundreds of developers to ‘train’ the AI to improve their coding skills.
Cybercriminals already boast of using tools like ChatGPT to automate everything from writing malware to creating dark web marketplaces, and Saidi says AI tools could affect the work of cybersecurity professionals.
Graphic designers and visual artists
Graphic designers could also be replaced by AI tools, with tools like Dall-E creating around 2 million new images every day (file photo)
Graphic art tools like Dall-E, Stable Diffusion and Midjourney could have an impact on the livelihoods of designers, illustrators and visual artists, Saidi says.
Dall-E (also operated by OpenAI) generates 2 million images per day, the company announced last year.
Midjourney created controversy when it won an art contest at the Colorado State Fair.
Stock footage giant Getty Images has launched legal proceedings against Stability AI, the maker of Stable Diffusion, alleging it has copied millions of its images.
Saidi says the ability to produce images cheaply and quickly will make this technology very tempting for small businesses without the budget to pay for graphic designers, artists or illustrators.
Saidi says: “It certainly calls into question the role of graphic designers and illustrators. Like ChatGPT, the images can be generic and difficult to refine, but with a little work and optimization, you can generate some stunning images.
“Many still rightly believe that human creativity will always be at the center of design, with some creatives looking to AI for artistic inspiration, rather than replacing its assistant.”
More tech roles?
As this technology displaces current roles in retail and marketing, Saidi believes it will create new roles at technology companies.
He says: “We anticipate, and are witnessing the very genesis of, a huge recruiting drive in the tech industry, likely picking up a large number of retail and administrative staff who have been displaced by the introduction of AI.”