The generalization of AI: Could it redefine the value of our work?

An increasing number of students and employees are using artificial intelligence daily to accomplish their tasks. This trend could redefine the value and meaning our society places on work.

Artificial intelligence is making increasingly significant strides each day. While its presence in the daily lives of the French remains relatively modest (32% of people over 35 report using it regularly), it has become a very real tool for students in certain fields (management, engineering, digital technology, creation, etc.).

A study titled “The Impact of Generative AI on Students,” conducted in 2024 by Pôle Léonard de Vinci, RM Conseil, and Talan, has examined this issue.

92%

of students use generative artificial intelligence regularly.

Source: "The Impact of Generative AI on Students"

This phenomenon raises several ethical, logical, and societal questions: the strength and expression of the value of work, equality of access to this digital tool for all students, the permeability of the corporate world to these changes...

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of young people spend €20 a month to use ChatGPT-4.

Source: "The Impact of Generative AI on Students"

An Eloquent Report, but Focused on Specialized Fields?

This study was based on data from a survey conducted in February and March 2024, as part of an educational hackathon that brought together 1,600 fourth-year students over five days.

In the face of these digital changes, the digital, engineering, and creative sectors cannot remain on the sidelines: they are now at the forefront of the use (and recommendation of the use) of generative artificial intelligence.

More surprisingly, the fields of management and human resources discuss more controversial dimensions. For example, a Chinese firm’s CEO is a generative bot. While its powers are configured by humans, it can operate 24/7, approving and signing documents like any CEO, but also managing projects, evaluating staff performance, and potentially deciding on sanctions, as reported by FranceInfo in 2022.

Is the Corporate Ecosystem Ready, Both Humanely and Structurally?

The report notes a possible "cultural shock" between employees of new and old generations in the workplace. Especially since these fourth-year students, who will mostly start their jobs after an additional year of study, indicate they pay particular attention to the integration of AI processes in the companies they choose. While the fields may be ready, the job market may be less so.

In this context, it's notable that ChatGPT is widely used by students (88%), raising questions about "algorithm training and data sovereignty," with tools and data being predominantly American so far.

And the Value of Work, in All This?

Time gains (for 62% of students) and productivity increases (for 65%) are highlighted. 79% of students “find that generative AIs enhance their ability to solve complex problems.”

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of students report using generative AIs to perform their work for them.

Source: "The Impact of Generative AI on Students"

The ease of use (ChatGPT is primarily an easy-to-use tool, in 95% of responses), to a lesser extent a "reliable research tool" (68%), makes students aware that they need to cross-check and verify responses to avoid "false information or distorted requests for 'better qualification of the request,' or even hallucinations, which are major misinformation risks."

How will it be possible to claim authorship of a work, and thus the resulting remuneration, when it results from an augmented AI? Should we reconsider our definition of the word "work"?

There will now be a difference in degree: until now, almost all jobs produce a result, a yield based on cooperation among individuals - but can AI be considered just another assistant? There will also be a difference in nature, as decision-making could shift from humans to machines. Indeed, "52% of students currently report that ChatGPT influences their choices."

51%

of students report that they would have a hard time doing without ChatGPT.

Source: "The Impact of Generative AI on Students"

Can we calmly claim performance and productivity that results from us only to a small extent? Without discussing the pride in a job well done, what will our added value be, given that it often underpins remuneration? And what about the equality of access to these paid tools, if they were to be endorsed by the educational community, for all students supported by the educational system?

Finally, there is a risk of creating a caste of people highly specialized in these high-tech languages, becoming difficult to replace. Yet their results and performance, crucial for the rest of society, would rely on fragile bases. They would be entirely dependent on technology to reveal themselves, and subject to evolving code and formulations that are hard for any human to keep up with.

The World of Work: Disruptions on the Horizon

By 2030, according to a median scenario, 27% of hours worked in Europe could be automated using AI technologies. This phenomenon is expected to grow, with 45% of those same hours potentially automated by AI by 2035!
Source: McKinsey - A new future of work: The race to deploy AI and raise skills in Europe and beyond

McKinsey also notes that twelve million Europeans will be disrupted by AI. This could lead some to consider reorientation or qualifying training, which is heavy and costly for society. This observation is even stronger, and the evolutionary gap in thinking and processes even greater, as AI enters minds that are sometimes completely new to these subjects, even if an upgrade is planned.

Moreover, given that intelligence is expected to eventually exceed human understanding, how will necessary human control over machines be maintained?

[...] in most cases, it is still necessary for a human to be involved to validate and correct the AI, which offsets the initial productivity gain.
Pieter den Hamer, Vice President of Gartner Research

Now… a Bit of Speculative Fiction

We might ask one final question in the form of (science) fiction: if, today, queries and results are still comprehensible to the human mind because they use articulated language and textual concepts, what if, tomorrow, the expression of these computer aids no longer matches any common code with humans, and humans are no longer able to "read" them? Will we need to opt for AIs controlling AIs, which would mean losing our power?

Or perhaps we will incorporate technological additions into our bodies that will serve as interfaces to communicate with these AIs and understand or command them (think Neuralink).

Neuralink is an American startup co-founded by Elon Musk: it develops brain implants. These electronic components can be integrated into the brain to enhance memory, control devices, and potentially better integrate the brain with artificial intelligence.

Source: Wikipedia