While automation due to AI threatens to steal jobs, AI can also create new job titles.

Artificial intelligence (AI) has quite evolved itself over recent decades. While it sparked numerous innovations and brought digital disruption to many industries, it also changed the jobs market forever. It is true that AI has replaced some jobs, however, it has also brought new roles for human workers. As per a 2017 research from IDC, released by Salesforce, AI is projected to create 823,734 jobs by the year 2021, surpassing the number of jobs lost to AI technologies such as machine learning and automation. The report had also predicted that AI would increase global business revenues by US$1.1 trillion in the same time frame. So, AI will continue to be the big game-changer in the global economy, with much of the value potential up for grabs.

This year, while the COVID-19 pandemic had an upsetting impact on the job market as a whole, AI still manages to continue its upward curve. Earlier, Analytics Insight had analyzed the data of open job opportunities for AI professionals from 2018 to 2023. The insights reveal that open AI jobs are expected to increase at a CAGR of 31.6% to reach a total of 1,928,658 in 2023, up from 489,393 in 2018. Analytics Insight also predicts the count to hit 1,006,945 by next year.

However, a 2016 report from Forrester reveals a negative forecast in job trends. As per the report, 16% of US jobs will be replaced by 2025, while an equivalent of 9% of jobs will be created, thus resulting in a net loss of 7% of US jobs by 2025. On the contrary, Patrick Moorhead, an analyst with Moor Insights & Strategy, said Forrester's estimate seems a bit high. He expects the number to be closer to 3% or 4%. Forrester also stated in the report that smart systems like autonomous robots, digital assistants, AI software and chatbots would take over customer service rep jobs and eventually even serve as truck and taxi drivers. Further, it asserts that from 2021, AI will undergo significant changes to diversify beyond current machine learning and natural language processing capabilities.

Demand for New Skills and Roles

The World Economic Forum's Future of Jobs report, mentions 5 million jobs will have been lost to automation. At the same, it also pointed out that job positions like software developer, computer systems analyst and market-research and marketing specialist jobs are set to grow by around a fifth between now and 2024. This indicates the obvious that with the rise in new job roles in AI, there will also be a similar rise in AI skills. For instance, LinkedIn witnessed a 190% increase from 2015 to 2017 in terms of skills required for AI-based jobs. It also means that the unskilled jobs are under ominous threat. Hence the need for AI-skilling to operate, utilize and advance disruptive technologies will remain unequivocally necessary.

With the AI spectrum is expanding, it is also predicted that the job roles will change every ten years too. A 2017 Cognizant whitepaper proposes 21 such jobs that will emerge over the next ten years and create mass employment. Some of these are AI business development managers, man-machine teaming managers, data detective, and AI-assisted healthcare technicians. Simultaneously, jobs like cybersecurity roles, business analysts, and financial analysts will also multiply as a result of AI. A recent survey by Burning Glass, which collects and analyzes millions of job postings from across the country, of how many technology jobs request machine learning skills reveals significant growth for 2021. These job roles include, Software Developer / Engineer, Data Scientist, Network Engineer / Architect, Data Engineer, Data Mining Analyst, Database Architect, and so on. Moreover, it is important to note that AI has also helped create jobs where man and machine can work together via collaboration, e.g., cobots.