Artificial intelligence: opportunity or danger for our jobs?

Artificial intelligence: opportunity or danger for our jobs?

The debate about the influence of artificial intelligence (AI) on the labor market is becoming increasingly important, especially in the context of the current challenges in administration. According to a recent report in the Bietigheimer Zeitung, Bitkom's managing director, Rohleder, said that certain activities will hardly be carried out by humans in the future, including technical translations and simple office tasks such as taking notes and standard correspondence. This is happening against the background that the administration is currently lacking 550,000 employees.

Artificial intelligence is not only perceived as a challenge, but also as an opportunity to increase the competitiveness of companies. The introduction of AI technologies could potentially maintain the performance of administrations and public services, which is of great importance given the current staff shortage. The situation is often different and more complex in countries with more young people entering the labor market.

The change through digitalization

Developments in the field of artificial intelligence are significant drivers of change in the world of work. As the Federal Agency for Civic Education explains, these changes mainly result from automation and networking, which are advancing through digitalization. However, the impact of AI on the labor market is currently still small, and the introduction of AI in companies is progressing slowly. Studies show that by 2019 only 6% of companies in Germany were using AI. Uncertainties about worthwhile areas of application are hindering progress.

Currently there are mainly weak AIs that are limited to specific areas of application. However, their development has the potential to have a more profound impact on the world of work than previous automated systems. This could potentially affect up to two thirds of jobs. Occupations with higher income brackets and educational attainment could be particularly affected, with studies predicting that 10% of work tasks for 80% of U.S. workers could be handled by language models like ChatGPT.

Challenges and opportunities

Although many people are worried about possible job losses due to the introduction of AI, these fears are offset by hopes for new fields of activity and forms of cooperation. AI can complement or replace human work or open up completely new areas of activity. There are already illustrative examples of the use of AI in areas such as data processing, customer service and human resources work, such as BG ETEM for checking accident claims or CityLine for optimizing flight handling processes.

Another example are bakeries that use AI to plan purchasing and production. These developments illustrate how companies are trying to harness the potential of AI to increase their efficiency. However, it is also observed that 43% of AI-related job vacancies remained unfilled in 2019, indicating a shortage of skilled workers.

The need for regulation that transcends national borders is also becoming increasingly important to govern the use of AI. In June 2023, the EU Parliament passed an AI law that defines different risk levels of AI. This regulation could help manage the social and economic impact of AI adoption while addressing the skills shortage issue currently affecting many companies.

Overall, it shows that the influence of artificial intelligence on the labor market presents both challenges and opportunities. The key is to carefully consider and develop strategies to actively shape the transformation and, above all, to take advantage of the new opportunities created by AI.

For more information about the opportunities and challenges of artificial intelligence on the job market, visit the articles from Bietigheim newspaper and Federal Agency for Civic Education.