Skills Come First. The Podcast About How to Stay Current

AI won’t do everything for us

On how to keep up with the pace of change in the world of new technologies, the future of education and universities, new ways of imparting knowledge, and validating acquired skills, the host of the podcast, Łukasz Grass, spoke with his guest, Aleksandra Przegalińska.

The guest of this episode is Dr Aleksandra Przegalińska, philosopher, columnist, AI expert, Vice-Rector for Innovations and AI at the Leon Koźmiński Academy, and co-creator of CampusAI.

AI – how to keep up with the pace of change?

According to the guest of the IBE PIB podcast, in order to stay current with the changes that happen in new technologies and artificial intelligence, one would need to update their knowledge on a weekly basis. 

“The AI revolution has been going on for about two and a half years. We’re at an interesting point; there are lots of solutions, and we’ve already started getting used to some of them. Research shows that for people entering the job market now, or those who have recently started their first job, using these tools has become second nature. You could say that AI has become a mainstream technology,” explains Aleksandra Przegalińska.

But that’s only one side of the change. Rapid AI development does not automatically come with the ability to use it effectively, particularly in business. Security concerns are mounting.

“The main challenges related to AI development are now becoming increasingly evident – geopolitical issues, such as countries using AI to gain an advantage, and the doubts that entrepreneurs have about whether AI tools actually deliver profits. The latter is essentially about evaluating the return on investment in AI,” explains Przegalińska. 

Microcredentials and changes in higher education

When it comes to AI and security, Łukasz Grass and his guest noted that although legal regulations exist, they are, and will remain, insufficient. They are unlikely to ever fully control those who are exploiting AI for political ends.

“Education remains the solution. It is never sufficient on its own, but in the absence of comprehensive top-down regulation, it’s essential to teach the responsibility for the models we work with. We cannot stop checking what we ask AI tools to do, which means we cannot stop being good at what they replace us in,” notes Aleksandra Przegalińska.

Przegalińska emphasises that when we delegate some tasks to AI, we should use the saved time to exercise skills such as critical thinking, fact-checking, and creativity. These skills will be essential not just for using AI tools, but also in the workplace.

“We should never stop doing even simple tasks ourselves. Research shows that the human mind quickly grows lazy and, after a while, loses the ability to do what it once specialised in,” advises Przegalińska.

Equally important is the validation of skills, such as critical thinking. Microcredentials can clearly fill the gap here. They are tools that provide additional insight into a candidate, highlighting soft skills and other abilities not reflected on a university diploma.

Will AI take our jobs?

AI development is driving significant changes in the labour market. Some are positive – tools can speed up many processes. Yet many people worry that AI will soon simply take their jobs. According to the expert, we can be certain that some professions will disappear in the future, but for the same reason, many new ones will emerge.

“We already have plenty of evidence that, at some point, programming will no longer be done by humans. In many companies, programmers are already more like supervisors of AI systems. I also expect major changes in creative professions, especially advertising, as well as in translation. A large part of this work will be taken over by AI,” explains Przegalińska, and adds:

“It’s worth noting that AI will not completely replace humans; there are few jobs where we will no longer be needed at all. Most roles will involve AI supporting us in certain areas.”

To learn more about the necessary changes in education driven by AI, and how microcredentials can help implement them, watch the full podcast and the next episodes in the series!