Will AI Replace My Job?

This is the question marketers, content creators, copywriters and advertising leaders have been asking since the December launch of ChatGPT: Will AI replace my job?

Although a 2013 study from the University of Oxford claimed 46% of jobs would be eliminated by AI, a more recent study from Goldman Sachs revealed that while 300 million jobs worldwide would be disrupted by AI, that doesn’t mean they will be eliminated. It just means they will be changed. In fact, they will be forever changed.

The answer is a simple one: No. AI will not replace your job.

A person who understands how to use AI will.

As with any new technology, it comes down to how it’s used. That’s why this platform is called Human Driven AI because these generative tools are only as valuable as the inputs given them.

Let’s look at a few examples of how AI will enhance and change existing job functions.

Visual and Graphic Designers

Here’s an example – let’s say you are a creative director and you are launching a marketing campaign for a running shoe. The campaign is all about how the running shoes will take you anywhere you want to go. So, rather than spending the client’s money on an expensive photo shoot, you ask AI to place the running shoe on the moon and that is all the direction you give it. You will end up with a very flat, completely unbelievable image like this one.

It looks like a Photoshop fail, right? That’s because AI still needs creative direction. the technology still needs an artist to tell the AI where to place shadows and dust to ensure the image feels real.

I added some of those prompts to a second request and the image below is better. But, I’d argue that a true graphic designer is still needed to provide even greater direction and/or final touches.

Now, those improvements could continue to be made in AI with additional prompts and direction. Or, artists may choose to adjust the initial image in existing design tools. Either way, the artist is still required – AI simply helps in the process.

Of course, generative AI imaging is getting better by the second. As anyone who watched Jensen Huang’s keynote to Computext knows, his accelerated computing (aka quantum computing) is improving AI-generated image quality with limited prompts. However, until, and even when, that level of quality reaches critical mass, the graphic designers who understand how to utilize AI tools will be the ones who succeed in this new era.

Social Media Marketers

Now, in some cases, generative AI will replace some jobs. We’ve already seen it through chatbots. When, I first started writing and speaking about social media in 2007, social was in its infancy and marketers like myself would literally respond to every single comment or question posted in our client’s social platforms. It took hours – billable hours sure, but hours nonetheless. It wasn’t long before AI chatbots replaced that part of the job. But, social media managers are still employed. Chatbots simply allowed them to focus on other parts of the job. It’s important to keep that in mind as you work with generative AI tools.

Written Content Creators

For content creators, generative AI can save countless hours by developing ideas for brainstorming and content calendars. That doesn’t mean AI will replace their jobs. ChatGPT and other similar tools can eliminate the dreaded task most of all – facing the blank page. As most writers know, having a first draft can be the difference between having something or nothing. When generative AI helps you develop that first draft, you can use your own skills, voice, knowledge and judgement to improve upon it. Check out this list of some of the ways generative AI can improve campaign performance and automate redundant tasks.

Coders and Programmers

Consider the time that is spent developing code. In the same way that generative AI removes the dreaded blank page by helping writers create that first draft, generative AI can help “autocomplete” basic code building blocks and resolve coding issues quickly and allow engineers to focus on more creative pursuits and strategic advances in the application of the code. In fact, AI is already playing a significant role in debugging code quickly and accurately. So, for programmers AI won’t replace their jobs, in so much as help them to do work beyond their job as it is defined now.

The bottom line is the more marketers can embrace generative AI tools and understand how to apply them to the work, the less at risk they are of AI replacing their jobs. As with any new technology, it all comes down to how to use it and the ones who embrace it and understand it to make the work better, more effective and efficient will be the ones who succeed in this exciting new era.

If you are interested in an in-person training or team workshop to better understand how to unleash the power of these tools, contact me today.