AI Impact – What’s Next Part 2

Ok, so AI is here, what are you going to do about it? This is a follow-up to my previous post. Part 1 – What is AI

AI is here, and it is not waiting for anyone to feel ready. The question is not whether it will affect your life; it already is. The question is whether you will get ahead of it or let it get ahead of you.

You do not need to understand every AI tool out there, and honestly, you should not try. Right now, there are dozens of them competing for your attention, but the field will settle the same way every technology field does, down to a handful of key players. For everyday use, the big names to know are ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, Google Gemini, and Anthropic’s Claude. Microsoft and Google have a natural advantage because they are already built into the tools most people use every day. The others will find their lane. The point is: pick one, learn it, and start using it. You do not need to master all of them.

Let’s talk about jobs, because that is what most people are really worried about. Yes, jobs will be impacted. This is not speculation. Jamie Dimon, who runs JPMorgan Chase, one of the largest companies in the world, has said publicly that AI will have a real impact on their workforce. I worked there for 17 years, and I can tell you that when he says something like that, it is not a casual comment. He is ahead of the curve, almost always. If a company of that size is fully committing to AI adoption, every other industry is watching and following. This is not something happening to someone else. It is happening now, across the board.

What makes this technology shift different from past ones is the range of people it affects. When automation changed the auto industry, it hit the factory floor. This hits everyone, white-collar, blue-collar, entry-level, and experienced alike. College graduates with computer science degrees are already finding that entry-level coding jobs are disappearing before they even start their careers. That is not a rumor; it is being reported and confirmed.

Here is a real example from my own experience. I spent years as a heavy Excel user and did Python coding as part of my work. After I retired, I ran a simple test. I described what I needed in Excel to Copilot, just a plain explanation of the problem, and had a working answer in about two minutes. I did the same with Claude for a Python script, explained what I needed in plain language, and it worked. No Stack Overflow, no manual, no hours of troubleshooting.

That is the practical reality for everyday people. You do not need to be a programmer or a tech expert. You need to learn how to clearly explain what you need, and these tools will do the heavy lifting. That skill, knowing how to talk to AI effectively, is quickly becoming one of the most valuable things a person can develop right now.

Here is something cool to consider. This is not like sitting down and learning to code with manuals, or trying to learn all the Excel functions to analyze data. Use the AI tools and figure out what to ask and how to ask it. Every question you ask gives you pieces to refine that question to solve your problem.

There will be an impact on the labor force at multiple levels, and that has already started, but there will also be impacts on the environment, facilities, data centers, electricity usage, the cost of AI ramp-up, and how businesses adapt. How this continues to roll out can and will change. I will use the next few posts to cover each of these.

One final thought, since this is a constant drive in the capitalist ideology, if everything continues to automate, what happens to humanity? Logically, you can see a slide into communism. That has to be considered alongside guardrails and what will or will not be allowed.

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