Leading professional services company Accenture, which laid off 19,000 workers in March this year, citing various economic problems as well as the increasing role of generative AI, this week announced it is investing $3 billion over the next three years in its Data & AI practice to help clients across all industries rapidly and responsibly advance and use AI to achieve greater growth, efficiency and resilience.

Accenture believes that companies that build a strong foundation of AI by adopting and scaling it now will be better positioned to reinvent, compete and achieve new levels of performance. Six years ago, the company pioneered its responsible AI framework by including it in the company’s code of ethics. Accenture is currently working with many clients on generative AI projects.

Similarly, Salesforce has announced plans to collaborate with Accenture to accelerate the deployment of generative AI for CRM. Together, the companies intend to establish an acceleration hub for generative AI that provides organizations with the technology and experience they need to scale. Specialists from the two companies plan to work with customers to develop customised AI strategies that can help increase productivity and profit for their businesses.

There is no agreement on how good or bad AI is going to be for mankind. But there is no disagreement over the fact that there is going to be serious disruption in the prevailing order and systems. A recent study by Tyna Eloundou, Sam Manning, Pamela Mishkin, and Daniel Rock, at OpenAI, Open Research, and The University of Pennsylvania on the potential impact of GPTs indicated that GPTs have the potential to impact most occupations, with higher-wage occupations generally presenting more tasks with high exposure. Approximately 19 percent of jobs have at least 50 percent of their tasks exposed to GPTs when considering both current model capabilities and anticipated GPT-powered software, the study said.

The fear of machines as job taker is not new. It had peaked during the early introduction of computers when it was predicted that the machines would force workers go home. In fact, it may sound unthinkable now that trade unions and leftist political parties had opposed the introduction of computers, but in hind sight, one realises that computers provided massive employment opportunities rather than taking jobs away. The fears have come back to haunt everyone once more, with the implications for the society feared to be much more serious. Apart from AI’s impact on jobs, heading the list of concerns is the risk that an advanced AI can cause harm on a massive scale, by making poisons or viruses, or persuading humans to commit terrorist acts.

The early jitters apart, there is now increasing realisation that AI could even have a positive effect on jobs. It could help workers using the new technology become more efficient, which would drive profits of their employers, bringing further benefits to the workers. A survey by IT recruitment firm Experis, cited by The Economist magazine, suggested that more than half of Britain’s employers expect AI technologies to have a positive impact on their headcount over the next two years.

A review by Indian IT body Nasscom listed several job positions that are threatened by the adoption of generative AI technologies. These include data entry jobs, telemarketers, sales people as well as factory workers. But pointed out many new job opportunities being created, such as data scientists, machine learning engineers and robot maintenance technicians, among others.

Nasscom says AI will lead to the transformation of many jobs. Roles that will be impacted the most are those that require human interaction and cognitive skills. For example, customer service representatives may find themselves replaced by chatbots, but those who can provide a more personal touch will still be required. Similarly, workers in marketing and sales positions may find their jobs changed by the increased use of predictive analytics generated by AI software.

It lists two-fold challenges posed by AI in the workplace: first, how to manage the automation of certain roles; and second, how to reskill employees whose roles have been transformed. This would mean that many organizations will need to invest in training programmes to ensure their workforce is equipped with the right skills for the future. (IPA Service)