Predictions about the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) have spanned utopia, robot apocalypse, and everything in between. One of the more “in-between” predictions is that of widespread job loss, a world in which automation makes the jobs people rely on for their living totally unnecessary. AI has now been commonplace for a few years, enough time for a more tempered assessment to occur.
The Wall Street Journal reported last week that major companies are eager to hire. After a lull in hiring and an uptick in layoffs, big employers are reassessing their needs and see new hires as essential to meeting their growth goals. “Major employers largely held back on adding people due to economic uncertainties or a belief that artificial intelligence could shoulder more tasks on the job. But some executives say the costs and limitations of AI now demand that more people be added; others want to hire people back following layoffs.” Temporary displacement transitioning into a period of hiring is quite standard for the job market; while AI has become a factor within this cycle, it is hardly the sole driving force.
AI has also contributed to a boom in physical jobs, like construction and electrical repair. Last week, the CEO of Nvidia, Jensen Huang, predicted that the trades would experience a spike in salaries and demand as data centers become more vital to powering the technologies we rely on. Like power grids, water systems, roads, and bridges, data centers are infrastructure. And, like any infrastructure, they require maintenance from electricians, construction workers, plumbers, and pipe fitters.
While fears of ongoing and increasing job loss and a shrinking need for human workers have been drastically overstated, this is not to say that AI is not changing the landscape of work. The technology has created new jobs and new fields as developers continue to unlock ways to leverage it. Schools around the nation are finding ways to prepare their students for a future where AI literacy is a valuable tool and AI progress is something they can contribute to. Louisiana State University announced last year that it is adding both a school of construction and a degree in AI. With recent hiring trends and forecasts in mind, this was a prescient academic decision. This summer, Southeastern Louisiana University announced a new academic concentration in applied artificial intelligence. These are but a few recent headlines from our state. To read more about how Louisiana’s educational institutions are embracing AI and readying their students for the future, visit our AI in Louisiana page.
AI is changing work, but not at the scale or in the way its naysayers had predicted. Hiring is increasing in areas where jobs are needed, and shifting to meet the realities of an age defined by both physical and digital infrastructure. In short, free market principles and the laws of supply and demand remain true, even when AI is involved.
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