Microsoft Study: AI Will Replace, Automate These Jobs

AI has a high chance of replacing many professions, according to a new Microsoft report.

Microsoft researchers analyzed an anonymous dataset consisting of 200,000 conversations between U.S. users and its Copilot chatbot during nine months of last year and published the resulting study last week.

The report found that the jobs with the highest chance of being replaced by AI were interpreters and translators. AI has been found to work well for translating, and there are many applications currently on the market, including popular options from Google (can create translated AI voiceovers) and Amazon (translates 164 languages in real time).

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The next most likely to be replaced by AI was a historian. The researchers noted that gathering information, including about history, was one of the most successfully completed tasks by AI. Copilot users tasked the chatbot with prompts about researching historical or social issues and examining materials for accuracy.

Also on the list were CNC (Computer Numerical Control) programmers, who create and develop the code that tells CNC machines to cut, drill, or mill materials. AI is taking over CNC programming by automating the process and making it more efficient with faster production times and reduced waste.

Meanwhile, the study also identified where AI is barely being used. Two professions that fell under this category were nursing assistants and massage therapists, which made it on the list because they require working with people in person. Other professions were AI-proof because they required operating or monitoring machinery, like truck and tractor operators, or manual labor, like dishwashers and roofers.

Related: Here Are the 10 Highest-Paying Jobs with the Lowest Risk of Being Replaced By AI: ‘Safest Jobs Right Now’

Copilot allows users to provide thumbs-up and thumbs-down feedback for each of its responses. Based on this feedback, the researchers calculated an AI applicability score, which measured how well different work activities are performed or supported by AI. The more thumbs-up feedback a response receives, the higher the user satisfaction and the greater the likelihood that AI could take over that task. The sourced employment numbers are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Here’s a list of the top 10 professions most likely to be impacted by AI, based on the overlap between their duties and what AI can currently do.

1. Interpreters and translators

AI Applicability Score: 0.49

Employment: 51,560

2. Historians

AI Applicability Score: 0.48

Employment: 3,040

3. Passenger attendants

AI Applicability Score: 0.47

Employment: 20,190

4. Sales representatives

AI Applicability Score: 0.46

Employment: 1,142,020

5. Writers and authors

AI Applicability Score: 0.45

Employment: 49,450

6. Customer service representatives

AI Applicability Score: 0.44

Employment: 2,858,710

7. CNC tool programmers

AI Applicability Score: 0.44

Employment: 28,030

8. Telephone operators

AI Applicability Score: 0.42

Employment: 4,600

9. Ticket agents and travel clerks

AI Applicability Score: 0.41

Employment: 119,270

10. Broadcast announcers and radio DJs

AI Applicability Score: 0.41

Employment: 25,070

For a full list, check out the study here.

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