What professions are in the safety zone?
If I had a son picking a university, here's what I'd point him toward — jobs AI will barely shift.
I imagined I had a son and had to recommend which university he should apply to. That got me thinking about what kind of jobs would barely be shifted by AI. These are my suggestions, based on my personal vision and human nature.
1) Pilots
We all know that even now, 90% of a flight is flown by autopilot. But it’s hard to imagine ever fully trusting an autopilot machine with my life.
2) Lawyers
Of course, AI makes it much easier to draft official paperwork. But when you have a conflict with business partners or relatives, the only way to resolve it is to go to court. I can’t imagine all of that paperwork — and the conflict itself — being handled only by AI, once you’re dealing with a real human dispute. You’ll still go to a professional in this field.
3) Plumbers
We know AI works best in well-documented, well-trained areas. But how do you train AI on every possible problem with your fridge, sink, pipes, and so on? Every job is a specific, unique problem.
4) Baristas
The coffee industry has become much more popular over the last few decades. The most popular coffee shops — the specialty ones — grab your attention not just with the coffee, but with the atmosphere inside, and of course the person making it for you. Worth noting: I mean only the high-end coffee places. The cheapest coffee shops have already been replaced by robots.
5) Teachers
I see a trend toward popular one-on-one tutoring. We’re at a point where lessons in big online groups are getting less and less popular — something that “smells bad.” The opposite is true for personal, private, one-to-one education. People are ready to pay for it.
