We have all seen the films, Blade Runner, The Matrix, The Terminator, and more recently Westworld. Does employment in the future look bleak for humans?
More and more factory jobs are already being replaced with robotic workers, and a day doesn’t go by when robots aren’t in the headlines.
A.I. is coming and that will be a true game changer. With driverless vehicles on the horizon and robots taking over continually advanced roles, millions of traditional jobs will be threatened.
How do you future proof your job or your children’s jobs against this unknown commodity? Is it time to rethink your next career move?
Whilst robots will ultimately replace every job and humans will be wiped out to make way for a Cybertron Utiopia, these are the ten jobs we think have some longevity:
1. Judge
OK not the easiest profession to retrain in but ultimately these people require objective and subjective assessments that are outside of a computers (current) capability. An understanding of consequence to your decision and ability to manipulate the parties involved are qualities that should remain future proof.
2. Professional Athlete
Would sport still be as engaging if all the players were programmed to the same ability. It is the strive and determination of these athletes that separates them from the robot. We’ve all seen TV show ‘Robot Wars’, and there’s a reason it’s never made it to prime time and never expanded beyond a geeky cult following. Maybe though this just leaves the door open for the doping discussion?
3. Personal Trainer
Where athletes are involved, the sports team/trainers are never far behind. The personal understanding of the client’s limits, nutrition and capabilities can’t yet be reproduced using AI. As more and more apps and bots are created to improve people’s fitness levels and general health, the Personal Trainer still remains the ultimate motivator, confident and occasionally therapist behind most people’s workouts.
Numbers can be inputted and workouts calibrated, but having the motivation and support of an actual human being isn’t comparable to that of a robot. Training as a personal trainer will also keep you fit as other jobs become more sedentary.
4. Teacher
Obviously, this field has been infiltrated by the computer with online course sites but ultimately the content doesn’t appear from thin air, someone needs to create this material. Education will change but AI will never eradicate human teachers. Even if the bulk of ‘learning’ is deployed by robots, teachers will still need to physically supervise children and monitor wider human development. For example, would a robot detect if a child is being abused, bullied or feeling stressed.
5. Chef
Now there might be an opening here for a computed sous chef, I’m sure the rate potatoes can be chopped is quicker with AI but it cannot taste, smell or understand palatable texture. Humans have a passion for cooking that can’t be recreated, which is driven by the fact that we actually eat food and robots don’t.
6. Investigative journalists
Journalism is not immune to technological advances; some aspects of journalism are already automated but Investigative journalism should always have a role, as long as digital publications can support them.
We are curious beings, looking, probing and exploring situations and making connections that a robot wouldn’t. It is the charm of many journalists that opens doors and makes people feel at ease, its traits like this that allows people to open up.
7. Authors
Robot created books are amongst us but they are limited to the data imputed, perfect sentences and ensuring the text is grammatically correct. It is a case of ‘computed says no’. Humans aren’t restricted, we can imagine, create scenes and plots that have us enthralled. Computers won’t be making incredible page turners any time soon.
8. Childcare/Nanny
Infants and toddlers need human interaction to learn and grow. Yes, a TV might give parents a break for 30 minutes but knowing your precious little bundles are in safe human hands rather than a machine that could malfunction at any time is priceless.
9. Computer Analysts
Ironic I know but it is suggested this area will actually rise in the employment stakes. People will be required to implement and manage all this new technology and A.I. There was a time when you were an IT Geek, now at least you could be a very employable IT Geek!
10. Actor
Whilst CGI is ever growing, it’s the breadth and beauty of human emotion and interaction, as well as human flaws, that makes films, television and plays so captivating. Whilst robots or computers may be able to recreate the depth of performances from actors like Nicholas Cage, they’d struggle to artificially generate a Dame Judy Dench.
Obviously, the workforce in two decades will look completely different to how it does now, but change is as good as a rest. If your profession requires creativity, human interaction and psychology you should be in a much safer spot in the future