Young People and AI Transformation
4.) If you are a young person, don’t be passive. In the next few years, not just jobs, but the shape of the world (see illustration below) you will spend the rest of your life in will start to gel. Pay attention to what is happening and try to find ways of having a voice in how our institutions will be transformed.
These four guiding principles can be regarded as the signposts on the journey that young people are taking.
Figure 1: Where and Why Society Must Adapt to AI (source: AIWG)
How Adults Can Help Young People
If you are a parent, educator, etc., encourage young people to use the four guiding principles to start discussions. Ask them how they are thinking about their futures.
If you are a manager working with interns, start conversations about how AI is likely to transform your business while encouraging them to follow the four guiding principles.
If you are an executive, you should be thinking about how to lower AI anxiety in your workforce to keep up productivity. As part of your program to do that, include help and resources for
young people, parents, and educators in understanding and adapting to AI.
Conclusion
Five years ago, young people felt that there were pretty clear roadmaps for preparing for an adult work life. With the advent of GenAI, that is no longer true. It is unclear how society will transform to adapt to AI. Given the uncertainty, what should parents, educators, managers, and executives tell young people? The best message for all seems to have four guiding principles: 1.) try to reduce stress; 2.) study what interests you; 3.) accept that your life is likely to be characterized by an accelerating rate of change; and 4.) try to participate in shaping the transformative AI adaptations.
