"The Human Edge in the Age of AI"

AI has hijacked millions of conversations in the physical as well as the virtual worlds. ChatGPT, Gemini, Meta, CoPilot, Grok, DeepSeek, Claude & Perplexity and several other AI tools are being used by a large segment of the student community and working professionals.

Tech-savvy individuals are, increasingly, using AI tools to find answers to complicated questions, manage their day-to-day interactions and even find solutions to subjective situations & emotional challenges. This has, in fact, led a section of society to believe that the human brain may gradually lose its cognitive abilities because of being underutilized. 

It can be said with confidence that it does not augur well for the world if AI is used as a "walking stick" or to find answers that are best cooked by human beings with their lived experiences. However, there is no doubt that several rational systems of the future will be run on AI-based solutions (their effectiveness might be questionable at first but they will, obviously, evolve)

Call for ACTION:

What should you do if you are a student or young professional starting out on your career path? Here are a few thoughts to help you stay relevant and thrive in an AI-centered world

1. First things first - You cannot afford to be ignorant or indifferent to AI. See AI as a collaborative element in your career and put in the effort needed to be AI-literate. Scout the web for AI courses and material that covers generic as well as domain-specific topics. Run through ongoing popular opinions and experts' opinions and stay updated on the latest developments. Though it may seem unimportant, AI literacy includes the ability to identify fake AI-generated content (AI hallucination) that could cause a chaos of no small order 

2. At the other end of the spectrum, strengthen your soft skills as no AI can possibly compete with your identity & personality. The World Economic Forum (WEF) in its Future of Jobs Report, 2023 indicates that even though AI and Big Data training are considered critical by organisations, analytical thinking and creative thinking rank higher. The WEF report says that life-skills such as resilience, flexibility & agility, motivation & self-awareness, curiosity & lifelong learning are ranked extremely high in the priorities of talent-acquisition departments. Socio-economic skills such as leadership and social influence are also considered to be key. You need to focus on soft skills that define you, alongside technology literacy, in order to be valued and sustainable

3. Grab opportunities to experiment with AI by volunteering for simple projects at college or companies providing internship opportunities. Shelve the fear of failiure and be deliberate in the time you set aside for such projects

4. Learn how to prompt AI in effective ways. Written communication, clarity of thought & intent and the ability to eke out points and ideas are key to making the most of language learning models. How you frame questions and word them in a precise manner will be a determining factor in the quality of response from AI tools. Understand the consequence of using different types of prompts and how the AI tool learns & adjusts its responses based on your querying style 

5. Create a group of AI enthusiasts and leverage on the power of collaboration. Be a part of communities that encourage diversity in thought to improve your awareness of not just AI tools but also their usage, challenges, evolution and so on. Organize regular discussions with friends who are interested in leveraging the power of AI and understanding its impact on society and the human psyche

6. Most importantly, be aware of & actively advocate the ethical usage of AI. Account for the drawbacks of a typical AI output that may carry an inherent bias or invade privacy or lack transparency. Remember to factor that into your conclusions and decisions at all times. The reason is evident - a world in which AI is allowed to run rampant could bring on the apocalypse sooner than otherwise and this has been pointed out by none less than those leading the AI revolution

Author Nirmala Palaniappan