Fear of Becoming Obsolete

fearful workers

The term FOBO appeared in something I was reading recently. It is the fear of becoming obsolete (FOBO) and it is very much a workplace fear and generally connected to aging workers and anyone who fears that they will be replaced by technology.

Of course, AI is a large part of this fear. It's not a new fear. Workers have always considered that they would be considered obsolete as they aged, especially if they did not have the skills that younger employees brought to the workplace. It has been at least two decades of hearing predictions that robots would replace workers. In fact, that was the case, though not to the levels that were sometimes predicted. Artificial intelligence is less obvious as it makes inroads into our work and outside life.

Employers and workers need to be better at recognizing the ways AI is already here and being used. Approximately four in ten Americans use Face ID to log into at least one app on their phone each day. That is about 136 million people. How many think about that as AI?

If you have an electric vehicle, A.I.-powered systems work to manage the energy output. In your gas-powered car, you very likely use an AI-powered GPS for navigation.  

One survey I saw found that just 44 percent of the global workforce believe they interact today with AI in their personal lives. But when asked if they used GPS maps and navigation, 66 percent said yes. What about predictive product/entertainment suggestions, such as in Netflix and Spotify?  50 percent said yes.  Do you use text editors or autocorrect? A yes from 47 percent. 46 percent use virtual home assistants, such as Alexa and Google Assistant. Even chatbots like ChatGPT and CoPilot - which are less hidden and more proactive for a user - had a 31 percent yes response.

Most of these are viewed as positive uses of AI, but not all uses are viewed as positive or at least are viewed as somewhat negative. One example of that category is the AI not so positive is its use in filling up newsfeeds. Each social media network - Facebook, Twitter, Instagram et al  - has its own A.I.-powered algorithm. It is constantly customizing billions of users’ feeds. You click a like button, or just pause on a post for more than a few seconds,and that information changes your feed accordingly. Plus, the algorithm is made to push certain things to users that were not suggested by your activity but by sponsors or owners. This aspect has been widely criticized since Elon Musk took over Twitter-X, but all the platforms do it to some degree.

Some common applications are both positive and negative. Take the use of artificial intelligence in airports all over the world. It is being used to screen passengers passing through security checkpoints. At least 25 airports across the U.S., including Reagan National in Washington D.C. and Los Angeles International Airport, have started using A.I.-driven facial recognition as part of a pilot project. Eventually, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) plans to expand the ID verification technology to more than 400 airports. This can speed up your passage through security which is something everyone would love to see, but what else is being done with that data, and will the algorithm flag people for the wrong reasons?

Do you want to push back on FOBO, particularly in the workplace? Some suggestions:
Continuous Learning: Stay curious and keep updating your skills. Whether it’s taking a course, attending workshops, or learning new technologies, continuous education is key.
Networking: Engage with your professional community. Networking can provide insights into industry trends and offer support and advice.
Adaptability: Embrace change and be open to new ideas. Flexibility can help you stay relevant.
Mindset Shift: Focus on your unique strengths and contributions. Everyone has something valuable to offer, and feeling obsolete often stems from undervaluing your skills.
Digital Detox: Sometimes, limiting your exposure to social media and other sources of comparison can reduce feelings of inadequacy.
Seek Feedback: Regularly seek feedback from peers, mentors, and colleagues to understand your areas of improvement and strengths.

An AI Chatbot Glossary

AI car dashboardEven some less-tech people have been experimenting with chatbots now that they are embedded in Google Gemini Apple and Microsoft CoPilot sites. A few of my less-tech friends have asked me what a term means concerning AI chatbots. Of course, they could easily ask a chatbot to define any chatbot terms, but it is useful to have a glossary.

I have had friends tell me that they have had some interesting "conversations" with machines. "They almost seem human," said one friend who has no idea what a Turing test would do. That sounds like fun, but the potential of generative AI could be worth $4.4 trillion to the global economy annually, according to McKinsey Global Institute.

Besides the obviously popular AI tools, there are others like Anthropic's Claude, the Perplexity AI search tool and gadgets from Humane and Rabbit.

A glossary would range from very basic terms. such as "prompt," which is the suggestion or question you enter into an AI chatbot to get a response which might lead you to "prompt chaining:" That is the ability of AI to use information from previous interactions to produce future responses.

What does it mean if a tool is "agentive?" That might be a system or model that exhibits agency with the ability to autonomously pursue actions to achieve a goal. This is where we enter an area that scares some people. An agentive model can act without constant supervision. Consider autonomous car features, such as brakes that apply without the user touching the pedal, or pulls a car back into the lined lanes.

Speaking of AI fears, we have "emergent behavior:" This is when an AI model exhibits unintended abilities.

Most AI tools warn about assuming that what answer is given is 100% correct. A "hallucination" is an incorrect response from AI. Even the AI creators don't always know the reasons for this aren't entirely known.

"Weak AI, AKA "narrow AI" is focused on a particular task and can't learn beyond its skill set. As marvelous as image creating AI can be, it has just one task.

A test in which a model must complete a task without being given the requisite training data is called "zero-shot learning." AI trained to identify cars being able to recognize vans, pickup trucks or tractor trailers.

More terms and some reviews of chatbots at cnet.com/tech/services-and-software/

 

Google AI Essentials Course

I mentioned in an earlier post that everyone in education - students and teachers - says that they use AI in their work, but very few can say they are formally trained or certified in the use of AI.

One option is Google AI Essentials. It is a short and affordable ($49 USD) online course that takes under 10 hours and provides you with an AI training certificate.

The course outline explains that there is a 21x increase in job postings mentioning AI technologies, so this training should give you an edge.

Google AI Essentials can help you discover how you can use AI to assist, empower, and inspire you. Learn how to use generative AI tools to help speed up daily tasks, make more informed decisions, and develop new ideas and content.

A course like this can help you use AI tools to boost your productivity. You can complete the course at your own pace. Zero experience is required

You can get started on Coursera

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Closing the Classroom Door on 2024

The biggest EdTech stories of 2024 seemed to all revolve around the widespread adoption of artificial intelligence.

This use of AI in education can range from fears of students using AI to "cheat," to AI-powered personalized learning. Platforms using AI to tailor learning paths to individual student needs, and providing real-time feedback and then adapting content based on progress is an AI path that most educators would welcome.

I also saw some increasing interest in skills-based training and upskilling platforms.

A positive trend is the increased accessibility to education through immersive technologies like VR/AR. I also saw positive potential with platforms addressing mental health and wellbeing within the learning environment.

Students of all ages and levels continue to acquire formal AI skills & training online: Students and workers might say they use AI in their work, but it is less likely that a person is certified in AI use in some way. (More on that in my next post.).