News/Future of Work
Job search AI deepfake detection: 5 tips for hiring managers
The expanding threat of AI deepfakes has now infiltrated the hiring process, with sophisticated technology enabling bad actors to impersonate job candidates in video interviews. These fraudulent applicants seek to gain employment at companies—particularly tech firms with valuable intellectual property and remote positions—to access sensitive systems, steal data, or install malware. With cybersecurity researchers warning that deepfakes can be created in just over an hour and predictions that one in four job candidates will be fake by 2028, organizations must develop comprehensive strategies to identify these increasingly convincing impostors. 1. Request actions that challenge AI limitations When interviewing remote candidates,...
read Apr 24, 2025AI teams will reshape work with “Frontier Firms,” Microsoft report predicts
Microsoft's research reveals how AI is transforming organizations into "Frontier Firms" where hybrid teams of humans and AI agents collaborate to manage intelligence requirements. The company's 2025 Work Trend Index Annual Report outlines a three-phase evolution that fundamentally changes workplace structures and introduces new roles specifically designed to manage AI systems, highlighting a significant shift in how businesses operate and organize their workforces. The big picture: Microsoft has identified a new organizational model called the "Frontier Firm" that represents the future of work in the AI era, where intelligent agents and humans form hybrid teams to handle business processes. Nearly...
read Apr 23, 2025Top AI research org layoffs spark concern for US tech talent pipeline
The Trump administration's dismantling of government AI research teams threatens to undermine America's technological leadership at a critical moment in the global AI race. Recent cuts at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and National Science Foundation have prompted tech industry leaders to warn about long-term consequences for innovation, competitiveness, and the talent pipeline that fuels America's AI sector. The big picture: The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by Elon Musk, has implemented significant cuts to federal AI research staff, including 73 probationary employees at NIST working on the CHIPS for America initiative. These firings follow earlier...
read Apr 23, 2025AI outperforms board members in business planning, CEOs say
CEOs are expressing remarkable confidence in AI's ability to match or exceed human executive performance in strategic planning and decision-making. According to a recent Dataiku survey, an overwhelming 94% of chief executives believe an AI agent could provide advice comparable to or better than human board members, while 89% think AI could develop superior strategic plans compared to their executive teams. This confidence in artificial intelligence reflects both its rapid advancement and changing perceptions about the technology's role in corporate leadership functions. The big picture: CEOs appear ready to delegate traditionally human leadership responsibilities to AI, though experts remain divided...
read Apr 22, 2025Former Meta employee turns AI prompt engineer in layoff-to-leader transition
From let go, to let's go! An unusual pivot to AI prompt engineering represents a growing career path in the rapidly evolving artificial intelligence landscape. One professional's journey from traditional media roles at CNN, NBC, and Meta to becoming a prompt director at an AI startup demonstrates how journalism skills can transfer surprisingly well to this emerging field. Their experience offers a blueprint for others seeking to pivot into AI careers without traditional technical backgrounds, highlighting the importance of identifying growth opportunities, leveraging existing skills, and strategic upskilling. The big picture: Former Meta employee Kelly Daniel successfully navigated a career...
read Apr 21, 2025AI chatbots are demoralizing some workers, study reveals
A new study suggests that overreliance on AI technology may be eroding human cognitive confidence and critical thinking skills, revealing a concerning trend as automation becomes increasingly embedded in daily life. This research comes at a pivotal moment when society must confront fundamental questions about how much cognitive responsibility we're willing to delegate to artificial intelligence systems, and the potential long-term implications for human intellectual development. The big picture: Microsoft and Carnegie-Mellon researchers found that knowledge workers experience diminished confidence in their cognitive abilities after using advanced AI chatbots, especially as they increasingly rely on AI systems to handle complex...
read Apr 21, 2025Players or conductors? Agentic AI’s impact on software engineers sparks debate
OpenAI's announcement of an AI agent that can autonomously build software applications is sparking intense debate within the tech industry. The forthcoming "A-SWE" (Agentic Software Engineer) promises to not only write code but also perform tasks many developers dislike, such as quality assurance and documentation. This development represents a pivotal moment for software professionals, as industry experts offer starkly different predictions about whether AI will complement human developers or potentially replace significant portions of the software engineering workforce. The big picture: OpenAI's Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar revealed their upcoming AI agent can autonomously build applications and handle the full...
read Apr 18, 2025Agentic AI transforms hiring practices in recruitment industry
AI agents are reshaping the recruitment landscape by addressing longstanding inefficiencies in the hiring process. These intelligent systems can analyze hundreds of resumes quickly, identify qualified candidates from diverse sources, and even help predict future hiring needs—all while potentially reducing human bias. For organizations struggling with the high costs of bad hires and growing talent shortages, AI recruitment tools offer a promising balance of efficiency and effectiveness, though human oversight remains essential to ensure these systems truly enhance rather than replace human judgment. The big picture: AI agents are transforming recruitment by making the process of finding qualified candidates faster,...
read Apr 18, 2025Gaming startup Operative led by Disney, Pandora alum blends AI with human storytelling
Operative Games is bringing a human-centered approach to AI-generated gaming narratives, emphasizing collaboration with professional writers and actors in interactive storytelling. Led by former Disney R&D head Jon Snoddy and Pandora co-founder Jon Kraft, the startup has secured funding from notable investors including Samsung Next as it seeks to differentiate itself in the growing AI gaming landscape by prioritizing narrative quality and fair compensation for creative talent. The big picture: Operative Games is positioning itself as a human-talent-first AI gaming company, integrating professional writers and actors into its development process rather than replacing them with generative technology. The company's leadership...
read Apr 18, 2025Did 1995 see this coming? AI to eliminate 2/3 of ad agency jobs by 2030
Artificial intelligence is radically transforming the marketing profession, with predictions that by 2030, over two-thirds of advertising agency jobs may become redundant. This evolution isn't signaling the death of marketing but rather its fundamental reconstruction, as AI increasingly assumes both routine and creative tasks that were once exclusively human domains. The transformation mirrors predictions made decades ago in Jeremy Rifkin's "The End of Work" (1995), creating a pivotal moment for marketing professionals to reimagine their roles as strategic visionaries rather than operational specialists. The big picture: Traditional marketing roles face extinction as AI systems demonstrate unprecedented capabilities in content creation,...
read Apr 17, 2025AI disrupts creators’ income streams, upends traditional career path
Creative industries are confronting AI as the latest challenge in their ongoing battle to sustain careers in the digital economy, according to experts at a recent Washington D.C. forum. The panel discussion, part of "The Story Starts With Us" event co-hosted by the Association of American Publishers and the Copyright Alliance, highlighted how generative AI threatens both copyright protections and the already precarious economic foundations of creative work. This conversation reveals the complicated relationship between technological innovation and artistic sustainability at a time when AI-generated content is flooding creative marketplaces. The big picture: Creative professionals see AI as the newest...
read Apr 16, 2025AI writes “Contagion” sequel, stuns original screenwriter
"Contagion" screenwriter Scott Z. Burns explores the creative potential and risks of artificial intelligence in a new Audible series that documents his experiment asking AI to write a sequel to his pandemic thriller. The eight-part audio journey, "What Could Go Wrong?", follows Burns as he interacts with an AI chatbot and consults experts about the implications of machine-generated creative content, raising profound questions about the future of both screenwriting and pandemic preparedness. The creative experiment: Burns engages with an AI chatbot named Lexter, programmed to mimic a witty former film critic, to explore whether artificial intelligence could generate a worthy...
read Apr 15, 2025Salesforce data: AI generates 20% of production code, not Anthropic’s predicted 90%
Salesforce's AI coding tool reveals the real-world impact of AI on software development, contradicting predictions of immediate developer displacement. While Anthropic's CEO predicted AI would write 90% of code within months, Salesforce's actual data shows Agentforce generating 20% of production-level APEX code. This gap between prediction and reality highlights how AI is transforming development roles without replacing humans, offering valuable insights into how AI coding assistants are actually being used at enterprise scale. The big picture: Salesforce's Agentforce coding assistant demonstrates significant but measured AI adoption in enterprise development, with 35,000 monthly users and 10 million lines of accepted code....
read Apr 15, 2025EU launches three digital skills academies – Quantum, AI, and Virtual – to address tech talent shortages
The European Commission is launching three new digital skills academies focused on Quantum Technologies, Artificial Intelligence, and Virtual Worlds to address critical talent shortages in strategic tech sectors. This initiative builds on the Cybersecurity Skills Academy and aligns with the EU's broader strategies outlined in the Competitiveness Compass, Union of Skills, and AI Continent Action Plan. These academies represent a concrete step in the EU's efforts to achieve technological sovereignty and maintain competitive advantage in critical emerging technologies. The big picture: The European Commission is establishing specialized digital skills academies to build strategic technological capabilities and address talent shortages in...
read Apr 10, 2025Why human code reviewers remain essential despite AI’s growing capabilities
The unique limits of AI in code review highlight a crucial boundary in software engineering's automation frontier. While artificial intelligence continues to revolutionize how code is written and tested, human engineers remain irreplaceable for the contextual, collaborative, and accountability-driven aspects of code review. This distinction matters deeply for engineering teams navigating the balance between AI augmentation and maintaining the human collaboration that produces truly robust, secure software. The big picture: AI excels at deterministic code generation tasks but cannot fully replace the contextual understanding that makes human code review valuable. Code review fundamentally differs from code generation because it requires...
read Apr 9, 2025Workday puts rock stars in suits to promote AI agents that do entire jobs
Workday's latest marketing campaign humorously bridges the gap between rock and roll stardom and corporate success through AI innovation. Featuring music legends Gwen Stefani, Paul Stanley, and Billy Idol in business attire attempting to navigate office life, the campaign highlights how Workday's role-based AI agents are transforming workplace productivity. This creative approach underscores a key differentiator in the competitive AI marketplace: while most competitors offer task-specific automation, Workday's agents can perform hundreds of tasks across entire job functions. The big picture: Workday has launched a new "Rock Star" campaign featuring music icons uncomfortably trying their hand at corporate life while...
read Apr 9, 2025AI experts are more optimistic about its job impact than the general public
AI experts are notably more optimistic about artificial intelligence's impact on jobs and the economy than the general public, though they acknowledge certain occupations face significant disruption in the coming decades. According to a new Pew Research Center report, this perception gap illustrates the divide between those developing AI technologies and the workers potentially affected by them, highlighting both opportunities and challenges as automation accelerates across industries. The big picture: 56% of AI experts believe artificial intelligence will positively impact the U.S. in the next 20 years, compared to just 17% of the general public. Experts overwhelmingly predict AI will...
read Apr 9, 2025University of North Dakota launches AI doctorate and cybersecurity programs to meet workforce demands
The University of North Dakota is expanding its academic portfolio with three new programs that align with evolving workforce demands in athletics administration, artificial intelligence, and cybersecurity. These additions represent UND's strategic response to industry needs while positioning the institution as a regional leader in emerging technological fields, particularly through its first dedicated AI doctoral program and strengthening its national security initiatives. The big picture: UND will launch three new degree programs that align student interests with employer demands, including a bachelor's in cybersecurity engineering and a master's in athletic administration this summer, followed by an AI doctorate in fall...
read Apr 9, 2025Salesforce’s Agentforce 2dx platform aims to replace missing workers with autonomous AI
Salesforce is revolutionizing enterprise AI with its Agentforce 2dx platform, marking a fundamental shift from reactive chatbot interactions to proactive autonomous agents that can work independently across business systems. This evolution addresses the critical workforce gap many companies face today by enabling AI to anticipate needs and take action without constant human supervision—potentially transforming how organizations manage their workflows and automate complex business processes. The big picture: Salesforce's Agentforce 2dx represents a significant evolution in enterprise AI by enabling autonomous agents to work proactively across company systems without requiring continuous human direction. The platform moves beyond the limitations of chat...
read Apr 7, 2025AI is forging a double-edged sword for Gen Z workers’ skills
AI technology is creating a complex dynamic for Generation Z workers, simultaneously enhancing certain capabilities while potentially eroding fundamental workplace skills. Recent research from Microsoft and Carnegie Mellon University suggests increasing AI reliance correlates with decreased critical thinking among workers, creating a crucial inflection point for employers managing young talent. This tension between AI as enabler versus crutch highlights the importance of developing intentional strategies to help Gen Z workers leverage AI effectively while maintaining essential human skills. The big picture: Gen Z employees are experiencing both significant advantages and concerning drawbacks as AI becomes increasingly embedded in workplace processes....
read Apr 4, 2025AI expertise up, coding skills down, as developer job market shifts
The software development job market is experiencing a significant shift as artificial intelligence expertise surpasses traditional coding skills in demand. Salesforce's recent announcement that 2025 will be its first year without adding software engineers, coupled with Indeed's report of developer job postings hitting a four-year low, signals a fundamental restructuring of technical talent priorities. This transition reflects how AI's accelerating adoption is reshaping the skills hierarchy in technology careers, pushing developers to evolve their expertise or risk career stagnation. The big picture: Traditional software development roles are seeing decreased demand while AI, machine learning, and cybersecurity positions dominate the tech...
read Apr 4, 2025AI coding tools may eliminate the drudgery and grunt work that build expertise
Does AI fail to put the proverbial hair on one's chest? The intersection of artificial intelligence and human cognitive processes introduces a complex trade-off that often goes unexamined. While AI promises to eliminate tedious tasks and increase productivity, this elimination of "drudgery" may unintentionally remove crucial learning opportunities that foster expertise and innovation. This tension highlights the need to carefully consider which repetitive tasks should be automated and which serve as essential cognitive foundations for deeper understanding and creativity in fields ranging from computer programming to scientific research. The big picture: AI tools that translate ordinary language into code are...
read Apr 4, 2025Florida Virtual School launches AI certification program to help algebra students multiply their skills
Florida Virtual School is pioneering AI education for middle and high school students through a new certification program launching next month. This collaboration with the University of Florida and the Concord Consortium marks a significant step in integrating artificial intelligence education into core mathematics curriculum, preparing students for an increasingly AI-driven job market while simultaneously enhancing their mathematical understanding. The big picture: Florida Virtual School students taking Algebra 1 online will soon have the opportunity to earn a free AI in Math certification through a yearlong program developed in partnership with academic institutions. The certification program will integrate foundational AI...
read Apr 2, 2025Bill Gates’ AI vision ignores tech limits and the uniqueness of human touch
Bill Gates' AI predictions suggest a radical transformation of human roles, presenting a vision that may clash with both technical realities and human preferences. His recent statements during book promotions paint an optimistic picture of universal AI assistance replacing many essential human functions, but this perspective overlooks crucial limitations in current AI capabilities and the unique value of human connection. The big picture: Microsoft founder Bill Gates predicts a future where "intelligence will be completely free" with AI replacing humans in most roles within the next decade, a timeline that appears unrealistically accelerated given current technological limitations. During interviews promoting...
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