A Refreshingly Optimistic Take on AI’s Future, Straight from Mastercard and Moderna
We’ve all heard the doomsday prophecies, the naysayers predicting an apocalyptic future dominated by AI. Job loss, environmental catastrophe, you name it. But is it all just doom and gloom? Not if you ask Mastercard and Moderna.
Mastercard’s AI Experiment
Now, listen to this. Mastercard, with its finger always on the pulse of innovation, decided to give AI a whirl in their customer service centers. And you know what? They didn’t kick their people to the curb. No, instead, they found that AI took away some of the more tiresome aspects of the job, and gave their employees the chance to have more substantial conversations with clients. Michael Fraccaro, the people guy at Mastercard, put it rather eloquently at the recent HR conference in LA, “It’s going to make your life on the day-to-day job even better, and we’re going to invest in your training and development.”
Macroeconomic Forces Pushing Towards AI
And if you think this is just a Mastercard thing, think again. Macroeconomic forces like low unemployment and a fertility rate that’s not keeping up with the replacement rate are pushing more companies towards AI. Josh Bersin, who was dropping knowledge bombs at the conference, said, “AI is here to give us the productivity we need in an economy that will have a scarcity of labor going forward.”
Moderna’s Take on AI and Upskilling
Moderna’s take? AI is the key to reskilling workers. Tracey Franklin, the HR head honcho over there, said AI tools give them a deeper insight into their employees, making upskilling a whole lot more efficient. The more data they gather, the better they can align the organization’s trajectory with the skills an employee needs.
Guidelines and Concerns
Now, don’t think it’s all a bed of roses. There are guidelines and there are concerns. Moderna, for instance, doesn’t let its employees access public ChatGPT due to security reasons. But they’re not sitting on their hands. They’ve got their own generative AI tool and are schooling employees on how to use it.
Conclusion: A Brighter Future for AI
All in all, the way I see it, AI’s future looks a lot brighter when we start viewing it as a tool for upskilling and productivity, rather than just a job-killing machine.