Job Apocalypse Or Reskilling Revolution? LinkedIn Co-Founder Exposes AI's Duality

LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman, who sold his product to Microsoft Corporation MSFT in 2016, delved into the multifaceted impact of artificial intelligence, highlighting its potential to both disrupt traditional job markets and provide avenues for worker upskilling and adaption. 

What Happened: On Thursday, in an interview with Fortune, Hoffman discussed the impact of AI on the job market. While acknowledging that AI will lead to the disappearance of certain jobs, Hoffman emphasized the positive side of AI in terms of employment. 

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He underlined the importance of reskilling individuals, matching them to new job opportunities and leveraging AI technology to facilitate the transition. 

“There will be some jobs that will disappear and navigating all that’s really important, both as CEOs and as societies…But A.I. can be part of the solution,” he said, adding, “How do you reskill people? How do you help match them to other jobs? How do you give him superpowers to do other jobs?” 

“Well, AI is an answer to all three of those things. And so when you say what should we be doing as leaders? What should we be doing as government? Well, let’s help people. Let’s use the technology to help make the transition,” Hoffman stated.

Why It’s Important: The growing popularity of AI, exemplified by OpenAI’s chatGPT, has triggered an AI arms race among major tech companies, including Microsoft and Alphabet Inc. GOOG GOOGL. 

However, concerns have been raised by executives, including the OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, about the potential job losses associated with AI advancements. 

In March 2023, it was reported that tech website CNET laid off many employees after news surfaced that the platform used AI to generate articles. 

British telecommunications giant BT Group also plans to slash about 55,000 jobs by 2030, wherein approximately 10,000 roles could be replaced by AI, reported Reuters.  

Earlier this month, Inflection AI, the startup founded by one of the co-founders of Google DeepMind, Mustafa Suleyman, and LinkedIn co-creator Hoffman, unveiled its latest AI chatbot named “Pi.” 

The chatbot is designed to provide users with personal conversations and emotional support — somewhat distinctive from existing chatbots like OpenAI’s chatGPT, Google Bard and Microsoft Bing AI. 

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