Artificial intelligence (AI) has made incredible advancements in recent years, leading to questions about its potential to reshape the job market. While some may have doubted the impact of AI on the workforce, recent developments in AI systems are quickly dispelling these doubts.
One of the most striking examples of AI’s impact on the job market is its ability to replace human workers in various industries, such as media, tech, finance, and more. This is exemplified by the recent rise in popularity of ChatGPT, an AI-powered language model that is replacing human workers in content creation, technical writing, and advertising.
However, the impact of AI on certain professions is even more profound. Recently, an AI-generated photograph won a prestigious photo contest, casting a shadow on the future of the photography industry. The photograph was created by Absolute AI, a company that uses generative adversarial networks (GANs) to produce images that are virtually indistinguishable from those taken by a human photographer.
Absolute AI entered the photograph, attributed to “Jane Eycke,” into the contest without revealing its AI origins. The photograph was awarded first place by the contest’s judges, Digidirect, who were unaware that the photograph was not taken by a human photographer.
Absolute AI later revealed the photograph’s true origins and returned the prize money. In the words of Absolute AI, “We did it to prove that we’re at a turning point with artificially intelligent technology by passing the ultimate test. Could an AI generated image not only slip by unnoticed (not one person who has seen the image has sensed anything out of the ordinary) but actually be awarded the top prize by a photography expert? The answer is resoundingly yes.”
As a photographer himself, Jamie Sissons of Absolute AI stated in an interview that he finds the technology’s potential to be “terrifying” since AI-generated images can outperform the work of human photographers. Sissons, who has won awards for his photography and filmmaking, believes that his work “doesn’t look as good as what a machine can generate.”
This development is just one example of the transformative potential of AI in the job market. While some may view this as a threat to certain professions, others see it as an opportunity to enhance human capabilities and push the boundaries of what is possible. It is clear that AI will continue to impact the job market in new and unexpected ways, and it is up to individuals and industries to adapt to this rapidly changing landscape.
