Reality vs scaremongers: what Al is really doing to employment

Amid the rise of artificial intelligence and automation, a new generation faces job market challenges. Insights from recent research indicate stability rather than chaos, but caution remains necessary.

- By Steven Sidley

A relative of mine, a young man, recently completed his MSc in artificial intelligence (AI) at a top university in Europe. One would have expected that the world would be at his feet and he would have a wide array of diverse job offers from which to choose. It was not so.

He (and his graduating cohort) had carefully developed articulate and attractive CVs and sent them off to companies ranging from big-brand corporates to NGOs and smaller entrepreneur-driven projects. The response was underwhelming, if there was any response at all.

The bottleneck in job applications these days is LinkedIn, which has become the primary (and sometimes only) place for companies to recruit. Jobseekers can instantly send their CVs to every single company in the world with an appropriate job opening.

The result is that there is now a vexing problem. Every recruitment executive is receiving hundreds (and sometimes thousands) of applications for every job opening. Recruiters are now being forced to turn to AI to filter applications. Nuance is being lost in the automation and hiring is being submerged under algorithmic dictates. To add insult to injury, AI has started to colonise job categories, especially at entry level.

My relative went through some anxious months. Six years of continuous study in a technologically critical and booming field, all for nought. He did finally land a terrific job, but it was not through LinkedIn. It was through a friend of a friend who gave him a number, which he called and asked for an interview, which was granted. It was old-style hiring (except that the first few interviews were on Zoom, only the final interview was face-to-face).

Beyond the forecasts