The challenge for the next 20 years will be originality. Artificial intelligence and Big Data search engines are only based on existing data. The databases that support their results are incredibly large, but they are limited to what already exists. They feed from a variety of sources, including news, blogs, forums, books, newspapers, online conversations, and much more. For content creators, what will set them apart will be the questions they ask, not necessarily the answers they get. This represents a paradigm shift in education worldwide, similar to the shift that occurred during the industrial revolution.
Since then, technology has advanced and human beings will have to assume a new role in its context. For example, Boston Dynamics, Google’s robotics company, demonstrates how a robot can perform tasks with agility and precision, threatening human work in repetitive tasks. The Atlas videos are really impressive and it would seem that we are watching a science fiction movie.
In the field of artificial intelligence, tools that can generate complex texts from questions show that a student answering standardized tests is a thing of the past. The academy will have to respond with questions instead of answers in the exams, and the value of the student will be in their ability to formulate correct questions to these artificial intelligence engines. Through the right questions, we will obtain innovative solutions. For the first time in a long time, the ability to propose solutions will be valued more than the final product.
originality and marketing
In marketing, the days when the only thing that mattered was the number of clicks, impressions or conversions are long gone. Creativity and originality will once again be valued above performance. This is because the performance will be achieved almost by itself through artificial intelligence, which will integrate messages until it finds the best combination for a consumer to buy a product. However, all brands will have access to the same technology, so the greatest value will be in creating unique things that no one else has thought of and that are not based on information from the past.
Governments will also feel this change. Winning a political campaign will require more than outreach, but will also involve politicians capable of devising entirely new solutions to new problems. In the end, the voter will be able to consult an artificial intelligence engine if what he wants is to improve the lighting in his neighborhood.
It is common to hear that “there is nothing new under the sun”. With the advent of robots, artificial intelligence, Big Data, and quantum computing power, this statement is truer than ever. The information used for AI engine responses is based on existing information, just presented differently for each user. Therefore, being original is key to success and the jobs of the future.
To ensure our professional future or that of our children, it is important to seriously consider investing in their ability to argue. In Latin American countries with failed education systems that have been based on standardized tests, the future looks difficult. I remember that in high school, a teacher gave me the best book I’ve ever had: “How to debate”. Years later, I realize that the most important skill I received in my education was the ability to present ideas, argue, and process information. At Harvard, the case methodology that uses a three-step system: facts, analysis and conclusion, could be outdated. Facts can be presented quickly but—again—they could be wrong.
No human being can compete with an artificial intelligence chatbot, since it has access to a lot of information and is capable of putting complex ideas together, or at least it makes us think. But, so far, none of these technological tools is capable of creating an original idea. It is the human imagination that will make these tools truly powerful. The combination of ingenuity and originality with a tool that makes us more efficient will open the doors to a bright future, as long as there is a state, families and institutions that foster a new generation of students with an educational philosophy based on questioning and argumentation. .
In contrast, the excessive use of tools that help the human being makes us lose some abilities. This is so in manual labor, certainly the majority of the population lost the ability to work the land because of the industrial revolution. The same could be for the abuse of artificial intelligence assistants. The risk is the loss of critical thinking and analysis.
The next few years will require leaders who use these tools to enhance their reach, not reduce their brainpower. Only through these tools will we open a new level of creativity.
