AI is advancing rapidly and promises to change our lives in the coming decades fundamentally. Many experts predict AI will eliminate many jobs as machines get better than humans at tasks like driving vehicles, translating languages, or analyzing data. However, AI will also create new types of employment and spark demand for skills that emphasize human qualities like creativity, emotional intelligence, and critical thinking.
The Emerging Careers in AI
Here are a few of the new careers AI may enable:
AI Ethicist
As companies increasingly use AI for decision-making, products, and services, they will need experts to ensure the systems are fair, transparent, and unbiased. AI ethicists will grapple with how to design AI responsibly and consider advanced technologies’ moral and ethical implications. Organizations like OpenAI already hire professionals who work on the ethical implications of AI.
Virtual Reality Architect
Demand for virtual and augmented reality experiences will grow in entertainment, retail, and business. VR architects will design immersive digital worlds and determine how to translate real-world environments, products, and interactions into virtual spaces. Creativity and design thinking skills will be crucial for this role. Companies like Facebook (Meta) and Google are already at the forefront of this industry, offering promising career paths for aspiring VR Architects.
Personal Memory Curator
In the future, AI may be able to record and store all of our life experiences, acting as a kind of “personal memory.” However, we’ll need people to organize, highlight, and extract meaning from the plethora of data and memories. As “memory curators,” humans will bring emotional intelligence and judgment to help individuals and families preserve and share meaningful life events. Start-ups like MemoryWeb are already tapping into this concept, pioneering the digital organization and sharing of personal memories.
Ethical Guide
As AI systems are increasingly deployed, we’ll need people to help address complex ethical questions. What data can be collected, and how is it used? How are algorithms biased? How can we ensure AI systems are fair, transparent, and accountable? “Ethical guides” will help companies navigate these tricky questions and incorporate ethical principles into AI design and implementation. Organizations like the AI Now Institute are already focusing on this aspect, promoting a more ethical approach to AI.
Concluding Thoughts
While these careers may sound like science fiction, the growth of AI is likely to create new jobs we can barely imagine today. The key for people will be to focus on skills that AI struggles with, like creativity, emotional intelligence, and moral reasoning. The future may be filled with AI, but it will still need a human touch.
