Loss of jobs is almost all people talk about these days due to the speed of advancements in artificial intelligence and the growing investment from tech companies.
As trillions of dollars move into AI which is set to improve productivity across multiple fields by replacing humans and completing tasks at a much faster rate, upskilling becomes crucial as the majority are almost certainly going to be replaced by AI.
Many questions have been asked in this regard. What's advised that people pivot to?
What's left that might still require humans and not AI?
I think that jobs that will remain or be created is something we mostly just have to wait and see. We cannot entirely predict it because that's all dependent on what level of advancement is achieved over the next couple years and what those advances means for the job market.
But, I think that one skill will be very valuable in the age of AI. Not necessarily because companies will be looking for people to fill such roles—they will anyways—but because being skilled in this puts one several steps ahead, with enough advantage to generate significant value for self in the age of AI.
Prompt engineering
You've probably come across this a couple of times, and as stupid as it always sounds at first, being a skilled prompt engineer will make all the difference.
But what is prompt engineering?
Prompt engineering is the practice of crafting precise instructions, or "prompts," to guide generative AI models like large language models (LLMs) to produce desired, high-quality outputs. It involves structuring queries, choosing specific words, and providing context or examples to improve the AI's accuracy and relevance, and it's crucial for developing effective AI-powered applications.
Why would prompt engineering be a valuable skill?
When all else is said, AI is just a tool at the core. Being a skilled prompt engineer means being some of the best at using AI to create value.
Some people consider it a glorified name for someone just sending texts to an AI, but even by just looking at AI art, you can sometimes tell apart which art probably had more work put into getting that result and what was a low effort prompt.
The non-creative will be unable to write prompts that leads to valuable outputs.
Value generation = profits
As I write this, they are already a lot of people making money with AI art. There are some doing it with AI stories.
Some will sit around and call it slop, but real artists can look at some of those works and understand that a ton of work goes into their creation.
If I were to write a book, maybe a fantasy fiction with the help of AI, it would be some of the best fantasy fictions you'd have read, but it would be something created with the help of AI.
We are talking about several hours drafting scenes, exploring concepts, coming up with creative names, reviewing speech direction, tone, message, by now I imagine that you understand what that looks like.
Yet someone somewhere thinks AI-assisted work is slop. It's not slop when a creative is involved, a skilled prompt engineer to be specific.
Millions are already consuming music generated by skilled prompt engineers. Many are already downloading AI art in great numbers from Pinterest because they love it, these too were generated by skilled prompt engineers.
The very same people are already actively using AI to create marketing videos and short films, what do you think the future will long like?
Prompt engineering will be like writing code, you're piecing together language that will lead to massive value output.
Being a great prompt engineer will mean being able to compete with big brands, creating value that people consume from your common place and being well rewarded for it.
Imagine prompt a great series that millions watch and enjoy, how rich would you be off that?
It isn't going to be easy labor, but smart labor!