“There are many studies that say that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is creating more jobs than it destroys.” In fact, new careers are being born, Elena Ibáñez, CEO of Singularity Experts, a startup that provides employment advice, tells BBC Mundo. And, at the same time, this technology “is making traditional professions evolve in absolutely all sectors.” The question -says the expert- is not where job opportunities point, but what we have to train ourselves in within our professions to capture the opportunities that AI is generating. “What we are seeing in the market, especially when talking to clients both in the technology sector and in more traditional industries, is not that AI is coming to destroy jobs,” Francisco Scasera, Technology leader in Argentina at the company, told BBC Mundo. recruitment company Michael Page. “We probably still think of humans for tasks that are too basic, I think the big challenge is to make the positions that already exist evolve to have a different added value and not stay with transactionality. The AI can take care of it.” Believing that AI is only a matter for Silicon Valley and big tech is not seeing the full range. Last year, for example, the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations was looking for an expert in AI and Machine Learning (machine learning). And indeed, at the UN Interregional Institute for Crime and Justice Research operates a Center for AI and Robotics.
“Unstoppable”
Despite the negative perspective with which many people view AI, not only because of its effect on the labor market, but also because of the power that they fear it could develop, not everyone sees the bleak outlook. While the World Economic Forum indicated, in a 2020 report, that the workforce was becoming automated “faster than expected, displacing 85 million jobs” by 2025, it noted that “the robotic revolution will create 97 million of new jobs.
In April, Gilbert F. Houngbo, director general of the International Labor Organization (ILO) was blunt: “Artificial intelligence is unstoppable. We have to accept that it will go further and further.” “But generally speaking, technological and digital advances often create more jobs than are destroyed. We know that,” the official told the EFE news agency. “It’s not the end of the job,” Janine Berg, an economist at the ILO, tells BBC Mundo. “It’s about incorporating this technology to make us more efficient, to help us do our job.” “There are occupations that are going to be created, but right now we cannot foresee what they will consist of.” The expert herself acknowledges that “there are many people who are training AI systems, in certain companies, whose working conditions are not so good.” That’s one of the many challenges facing that sector: the hundreds of thousands of workers, many low-income and in poor countries, without whom various AI systems would not exist. Despite its many controversies, AI is already integrated into our lives. “The important thing is to feel comfortable with technology and that does not mean that they have to study programming, but to be aware that in the job market employers are going to be looking for people who use AI as a tool for their work, to be more productive”. And, according to Berg, it is not necessary to do expensive specializations abroad, in Latin America there are study centers and training initiatives in tune with market demands. “The key is to be willing to learn and ask questions.” We tell you about some jobs that are being created in the field of AI:
1. Prompt Engineer
Imagine that I ask you for something, but I don’t give you enough information or a context of what I need. Surely you will try to help me, but your answer may not be as accurate as if you had had more data. Let’s take that example to the various generative AI models that have become increasingly efficient at understanding natural language, the one you and I use to communicate: the prompt engineer A prompt engineer is the person who designs prompts, requests, or premises, and then submits them to an AI tool.
The key for the tool, when asked by a user, to give the best result depends to a large extent on the prompt engineer having developed really effective instructions (in text form), in which precision and context are essential. . In March, the World Economic Forum listed it in “3 New and Emerging Jobs,” while Business Insider rates prompt engineering as one of the hottest works in generative AI. The same adjective is used by Forbes, “the hot new job”, and the Arizona State University when presenting one of its courses: “one of the hottest new jobs”. In April, Time magazine noted that this type of job did not require “a degree in computer engineering, or even advanced programming skills.” And although some sources agree that it is not essential to have technological training and highlight that the key to this position is to have skills such as critical thinking, data analysis and creativity, several job offers seen by BBC Mundo also ask for the Knowledge of programming languages such as Python and TensorFlow, as well as experience with machine learning models. But not all experts view prompt engineering with unbridled enthusiasm. For many, it is an occupation that may become short-lived given the rapid advancement of AI. “I have a strong suspicion that ‘prompt engineering’ is not going to be a big business in the long run…it’s not the job of the future,” Ethan Mollick, an associate professor at the University of Pennsylvania, wrote on X (formerly Twitter). . Others see it more as an ability to be more competitive, like Microsoft Excel at the time, for example. “It is said that if you are good at prompt engineering, you could avoid being replaced by AI, and you could even aim for a high salary. Although it remains to be seen whether that will continue to be the case,” wrote Richard Fisher, author and editor of BBC Future.
2. AI Researcher
His role is to identify ways to use AI to overcome problems and limitations that organizations have.
He specializes in “understanding large data sets and turning that learning into ideas and plans for developing new AI technologies that data scientists will bring to life,” the University of Leeds notes in the article. What are the Top 5 Jobs in AI? (What are the top 5 jobs in AI?) An AI researcher must have what are known as soft skills, those that are related to emotional intelligence, critical thinking, resilience, adaptability, among others. They are key skills, says the academic institution, because their “role will involve frequent brainstorming to find new methods and approaches.” Technically, “mathematical skills to use statistics and predict how AI programs will execute, and the ability to analyze data with experience in tools such as RapidMiner or SketchEngine” will also be important. For Ibáñez, this professional must be an expert in three fields: software engineering, statistics and business. “In other words, it is a very complete profile that applies all its technical knowledge to improving a business.”
3. Expert in natural language processing
He is the humanist expert who masters linguistic models and supports the software development team with language processing, says the specialist.
Usually, a degree in Philology, Linguistics or Translation and Interpretation is required. And, while it doesn’t require deep technological knowledge, a specialization in natural language processing or a master’s degree in computational linguistics, it enriches the profile of the candidate. Computational linguistics, which is an interdisciplinary field that has been with us for decades, seeks to translate the logic of written and spoken language into machines so that later, through model training, they can execute tasks. This is how behind chatbots there are not only data scientists and software developers, but also members of other humanistic disciplines, such as philosophy and psychology.
4. Expert in robotic process automation or RPA (Robotic Process Automation)
It is about managing software systems that automate repetitive and manual tasks in a company. According to Ibáñez, to train in this, there are several degrees such as programming and especially specializations related to RPA.
Companies like Microsoft associate the adoption of RPA by organizations with increases in productivity. “RPA benefits your business by automating various activities, including data transfer, customer profile updating, data entry, inventory management, and other more complex tasks,” it says on its website.
5. Algorithm Auditor
Ibáñez explains that this worker reviews system or application algorithms to ensure that they are free of biases that discriminate against people based on gender, race, age. He can have both a technical background (software developer, computer scientist) and a more humanistic background that delves into ethics.
In fact, algorithm auditors must have a working understanding of how algorithms can affect people. Hence, the importance of working closely with data scientists to regularly review the algorithms, make sure that “they are transparent, fair and explainable” and that once published they maintain impartiality, he points out on his Singularity Experts page. “In addition, it will provide recommendations to developers on how to make the model more ethical and understandable for the population.”
6. Ethicist and legal specialist with knowledge of AI
“Regardless of where you are in the AI value chain, whether you produce the technology, use it or make content to train it, it is important that you have AI-savvy lawyers and ethicists by your side,” he told her. says to BBC Mundo Mathilde Pavis, associate professor at the Law School of the University of Reading, in England. “That’s going to allow you to make sure you’re not doing something that later has to be removed.”
As a specialist in intellectual property law, ethics and new technologies, Pavis also advises governments, organizations and businesses on the impact of AI on the handling of sensitive data. She raises some of the main questions that generated by AI are: are intellectual property rights violated when it is trained with information that is on the internet or on social networks? Does doing that violate the rights to privacy? “Obviously there is a potential risk that the technology you develop will be misused by others, even if that was never your intention,” warns the professor. That it be used, for example, to spread false information, commit fraud, destabilize elections.
For this reason, it is essential that control mechanisms be implemented from the beginning regarding the legal, social and ethical impact of the AI technology that is created or used. And that is one of the fields of law that AI is opening up. Lawyers are needed who can understand and connect two worlds:
- That of commercial law, which includes intellectual property
- That of criminal law and cybersecurity
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They are worlds that do not usually communicate with each other. But, “AI swings on that spectrum: it’s a product with great commercial potential and, at the same time, potential for misuse.” A lawyer who wants to venture into the field of AI must, for example, advise a company that wants to bring “a great product, an AI innovation, to the market”, with the commercial legal framework and with the regulatory framework in Internet.
Pavis specializes in the use of AI in the creative industries. More specifically in the content generated with AI: voices and faces, “digital cloning of human beings”. advisor startups that they “want to make sure” that the cloning technology they are developing does not break the law. “I also work with artists who want to participate in the ‘AI revolution,’ but want to be sure that the assets they bring to the table—the recordings of their voices, their performances—are not being misused or in some way , they become their own competition in the market”. “And I also work with companies and the media that want to commission products that involve AI, but want to make sure that everything is done properly and ethically,” he concludes.
“In 2025, analytical thinking, creativity and flexibility are among the main skills needed; with data and artificial intelligence, content creation and cloud computing being the main emerging professions”. World Economic Forum, 2020
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