It was a “blink and you miss it” moment, and the only reason I saw it was because of an eagle-eyed friend who happened to be walking home from a meeting: a Waymo car, exiting the Williamsburg Bridge in New York City. Waymo cars, of course, have been ubiquitous in the Bay Area, Los Angeles, and Phoenix for a while, but entering the biggest market in the United States, not to mention the one with the most taxis and ride share vehicles already operating, is a massive step forward.
More than just a market expansion, it represents a decisive moment – Waymo and self driving vehicles are here to stay. Just like a whole host of other emerging technologies, they have created the hype curve and are well on their way to mass adoption. And for workers about to be potentially impacted, the central question now becomes not “how do I resist this?” but “how am I better than this?” In other words, what is my “non-machine premium?”
A non-machine premium, put simply, is a way that a human is an improvement over an AI system. While AI can and eventually will replace many rote roles, humans will still be needed in critical areas, and every human worker needs to start examining how they can improve in at least one of those areas in order to remain employable.
The first area is emotion. This is why people in “caring” professions will withstand the growth of AI the best. While some people have been using ChatGPT and other platforms to talk through problems and approximate therapy, there is really no solution for someone who listens, nods along, and provides empathetic feedback. Journalists will also have more job security, as those who can form bonds with sources and tease out information have an advantage. Can an AI write a summary of existing information? Sure. But an AI will never be able to form relationships with sources, go on background over drinks, and break news the following day.
The second area is experience. Imagine you are a taxi driver in New York City, watching that Waymo roll past you. You have two options – resisting, which only goes so far and alienates your customer base, or recalibrating. In the short term, maybe you can compete on price, but that likely won’t last long, as the operating cost of a self-driving car will drop. It will be hard to compete on safety given that early studies show that Waymo is exponentially safer than human drivers (to be fair, this data represents a small market) and that, to date, no Waymo has been credibly accused or convicted of sexual assault.
But on the flipside, every Waymo ride is functionally the same. A self-driving car can’t go out of its way to tell you about a neighborhood, collaborate on a social media post, or entertain a rider with a great playlist. A human-piloted car could eventually become a luxury good, and if a driver can offer a great, differentiated, engaging experience, that could be enough for some people to choose them over an alternative.
The third area is enhancement. Every day, humans have plenty of experiences where they ask for something and it gets delivered as-is, and that’s fine – but machines can also just deliver as-is. The area where humans can excel is enhancing the experience.
Enhancement doesn’t require a lot of effort, either. When I was checking in for a flight recently, the woman behind the counter noticed that I was sitting in a seat that appeared to be a window seat on the map, but didn’t actually have a window. She proactively went ahead and moved me up a seat so that I would have a more pleasant experience. AI, on the other hand, would have just checked me into the seat I booked, which would have been fine – that was, after all, what I reserved. And a bad customer service representative would have done that, but they would have also made me wait in line, been rude or curt, or given me incorrect information.
The fourth area is ego. That often has a negative connotation, but ego and identity are powerful when it comes to making people want to connect with you. Take Taylor Swift, for example. Could an AI be trained to write and sing songs like her? Probably, at some point. But people don’t just love her music – they love her energy and her story and her personality – all things that can’t be replicated by a machine.
But you don’t have to be one of the biggest pop stars on the planet to use ego as your premium. Just being a pleasant, likable, reliable, and hard-working person goes a long way, especially if you take initiative and communicate well. Being a “good hang” who builds strong relationships and networks might be the most valuable skill of all in the future.
The good news is that there is lead up time for those who are worried about displacement. AI-powered virtual human avatars can be used for conversation and feedback practice so people can improve their communication skills. Picking one customer every day to offer an expanded experience means someone will have a strong portfolio of differentiation when it comes time to defend their work. Offering great experiences now and focusing on service means that a base of goodwill can be built up and strong relationships are in place.
In an ideal world, the mass adoption of new technologies means a rising tide lifts all boats. People enjoy their work because the rote tasks are taken care of, and customers have premium experiences. If we start considering how to enhance our non-machine premiums now, we can all benefit.
