NB6 – Will AI Take Your Job?

While “The Godfather of Artificial Intelligence” turned AI doomer, Geoffrey Hinton, is on the media circuit warning that some future super-intelligence may eradicate humankind, Geoff and Greg set their sights on a near-term risk that’s on every marketer’s mind: Is generative AI coming for our jobs? 

In this “ripped from the headlines” episode, Greg and Geoff consider forecasts about AI’s impact on the future of work. They take a look at some of the ways AI is stripping value from companies, factoring into hiring freezes, and sending writers to the picket line. And they go deep into a debate about the ultimate effect of AI on knowledge workers in general and marketers in particular. Should you be polishing your resume or flexing your marketing muscles? It may not be so black-and-white.

What to Listen For

(Timestamps reflect the audio show and may be slightly different for the video.)

• 00:00:00 Intro

• 00:02:45 Geoffrey Hinton quits Google to warn us about AI

• 00:09:01 Rapid change and dystopian fears

• 00:14:23 80% of jobs will be impacted by AI

• 00:17:14 Workers ‘replaceable’ by Generative AI

• 00:26:40 Change demands an agile approach

• 00:31:08 Chegg sheds market value in the face of AI

• 00:33:41 Hollywood writers strike

• 00:37:38 True creativity and the limits of AI art

• 00:51:34 Outlier thinkers and creatives have an advantage in the age of AI

• 00:55:50 Greg argues that AI will take marketing jobs (point)

• 00:57:54 Geoff argues that the future is up to you (counterpoint)

• Geoffrey Hinton quits Google to speak out about AI’s “existential” risk.

• In the past, other prominent Google AI experts have been fired for sharing their concerns about AI.

• Studies by Goldman Sachs and OpenAI themselves point to the potential for widespread job impact and white-collar job loss due to AI automation. Tech trend analyst Dave Mattin painted a picture of how this might happen with designers as tools like Firefly democratize design work in organizations.

• Meanwhile, a Pew study found that the majority of Americans believe AI will indeed “massively” impact jobs, but few believe their own jobs will be among those affected.

• Chegg lost north of 40% of their market cap, pointing the finger at ChatGPT-driven disruption.

• IBM announced plans to freeze hiring for thousands of jobs, including around 8,000 CEO Arvind Krishna believes can be automated away by AI.

• And the Hollywood Writers Strike may be a sign of things to come, as writers fear their work may be devalued as studio executives argue machines might indeed be able to do the writers’ jobs.