HOW many employees will there be in the factory of the future? The late American scholar Warren Bennis opines two — a man and a dog.
The man's job is to feed the dog and the dog's task is to bite the man's hands should he touch the dials on the control panel.
It is a hilarious exaggeration. But it also showed the extent to which artificial intelligence, or AI, could displace tasks and jobs.
A recent study by global consultancy firm McKinsey suggests that by 2030, AI will displace as much as 40 per cent of jobs globally as companies integrate the technology into their businesses.
The displacement will be 14 times more likely for occupations at the lower end of the skills spectrum.
Malaysia's situation reflects the larger global trend.
Last week, at the launch of TalentCorp's study on the impact of AI, digital economy and green economy on the Malaysian workforce, Human Resources Minister Steven Sim floated the figure 600,000 as the number of workers across 10 key sectors who would be displaced over the next three years.
The displacement would be larger if the other sectors contributing to the remaining 40 per cent of gross domestic product were included in the study.
Just as in the 1960s fantasy sitcom I Dream of Jeannie, in the present context, the AI genie is out of the bottle! The bewildered protagonist has difficulty putting the overly devoted genie back into the bottle.
Similarly, companies have little option but to incorporate AI in their operations, lest they become dinosaurs.
Managing the downsides of AI will require adaptability at the individual, company and government levels.
Let's take the individual. They must audit their skills and upgrade them to AI standards to remain relevant in their occupations.
Studies show that workers, especially on the lower rungs, who are AI-adept demonstrate as much as 40 per cent improvement in productivity.
AI literacy would include specialised skills, such as data science and robotics, and soft skills, such as empathy, critical thinking and creativity.
As AI is prone to hallucination — producing bias and disinformation — employees must be agile and apply good judgment to the machine output for improved performance.
In his 2024 book Co-Intelligence: Living and Working with AI, Ethan Mollick, a professor at the Warton School, University of Pennsylvania, argues that employees should leverage AI in their tasks.
As they work with the machine, they would learn new skills; just like we improved our numeracy by working with calculators and spreadsheets, even as these tools made work easier.
Businesses should increasingly look to hiring more skilled workers to ensure a seamless integration of AI with existing technology.
As they already have human capital, businesses should hire from within through reskilling and upskilling. That would not only be equitable but would also minimise the disruption from AI integration.
The government has a preeminent role in the orderly assimilation of AI in the public service and business.
The TalentCorp report is long on proposed public policies. One of the recommendations is to include AI skills in the education curricula, from preschool to tertiary level.
While this inclusion is welcome, it should be complemented with AI tools and platforms for assisted and interactive learning.
Lest we forget, our overworked teachers too should be trained in AI for teaching, grading, classroom management and individualised student support.
Malaysia has established several guardrails in developing and using AI.
These include the AI Roadmap, 2021-2025, the 1998 Computer Crimes Act, and the 1998 Communications and Multimedia Act.
As AI has developed at a blistering pace, these mechanisms should be reviewed for continued relevance.
Other guidelines, such as the 2024 AI Governance and Ethics Code, should be made into binding regulations like the European Union's AI Act.
These initiatives should help in the orderly development of AI and lessen its job displacement impact.
The writer is an adjunct professor at Perdana University