AI likely to redefine job roles, create new categories of employment

As AI tools become more integrated into the workplace, the ability to work alongside and leverage these technologies becomes a critical skill, which is likely to redefine job roles and create new categories of employment, writes RMIT senior lecturer Dr Arthur Tang.

The advent of AI, particularly Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, Copilot and Gemini, is poised to significantly influence career development and job requirements across various industries.

As AI tools become more integrated into the workplace, the ability to work alongside and leverage these technologies becomes a critical skill. This shift is likely to redefine job roles and create new categories of employment.

For professionals with limited technical skills, AI opens up opportunities to engage in more complex problem-solving without the need to master computer programming or data science. For example, a marketing professional could use an LLM to analyze consumer data and generate insights for targeted campaigns, or a project manager could utilize AI to optimize resource allocation and project timelines based on predictive models.

This democratization of data analysis and decision-making means that the future workforce will need to be proficient in AI literacy. Employers will increasingly look for employees who are not only comfortable using AI tools but who can also critically assess and interpret the outputs of such systems.

One primary ethical issue with LLMs is data privacy, especially when they handle sensitive information. Highlighting this concern, Samsung last year banned its employees from using ChatGPT and other LLM tools after sensitive corporate data, including a proprietary source code, was leaked through these platforms.

This incident underlines the substantial risks involved in using public LLMs with sensitive information. It serves as a reminder of the need for stringent security measures in any professional setting that uses such technologies.

Another serious concern with LLMs is the accuracy of the information they provide. The phenomenon known as "AI hallucination", where AI systems generate plausible but incorrect or misleading information, presents significant risks, particularly in critical areas such as medical advice.

Our recent study investigated how LLM technology affects the dissemination of medical information, revealing that it exacerbates the digital divide. LLMs often yield better performance in high-resource languages such as English, potentially leaving speakers of less common languages, such as Vietnamese, with less reliable tools.

Moreover, socio-economic barriers such as limited internet access and low digital literacy further compound these challenges, restricting the effective deployment of AI technologies in economically disadvantaged regions. This situation highlights the urgent need for increased scrutiny and the development of improved methodologies in AI, ensuring equitable access and accuracy across all languages.

The ideal workplace involves seamless integration where both humans and AI systems complement each other's capabilities. In such a dynamic, AI would handle large-scale data analysis and routine tasks, while humans would focus on areas requiring creative and critical thinking, interpersonal skills, and ethical judgment. This collaboration aims to leverage AI's efficiency and analytical capabilities alongside human empathy and strategic insights, enhancing productivity and innovation.

For today's university students, developing a robust set of skills that include AI literacy, data analytics, problem-solving, and ethical decision-making is crucial. As AI becomes more embedded in various professional fields, the ability to interact with and interpret AI outputs will become as important as understanding the underlying principles of AI technologies.