GEORGE TOWN, Feb 26 — Thinking of becoming an accountant or engineer? You may want to rethink your future as such jobs will become obsolete soon, according to the International Strategy Institute (ISI).
Its chairman Cheah Chyuan Yong said young Malaysians should focus on careers based on the Internet of Things (IoT) instead of traditional professions in accounting, law and engineering as these professions will “inevitably be taken over by artificial intelligence”.
”All companies will soon be exposed to the benefits of artificial intelligence, and they will have no choice but to adopt it because it will be more cost effective to use artificial intelligence rather than human resource, which is more expensive,” he said at the Penang International Business and Investment Summit (PIBIS) here today.
ISI describes itself as a not-for-profit institute that organises events to connect government and businesses.
In his speech, Chuah said 40 per cent of all existing jobs today are predicted to be wiped out within 15 years from now.
”If we are not careful and ready, we stand to face a serious social and economic crisis,” he said.
When asked to elaborate, Cheah said he cannot predict the jobs of the future but it would mostly focus on jobs that enhance artificial intelligence.
He said the youths can look into fields like programming and coding in IoT, blockchain and automatic logistics solutions and also humanities studies.
“Professions that focus on humanities, sociology, anthropology, are still within the grasp of human faculty,” he said.
He said humanities studies are still important as it will be dangerous to let artificial intelligence dominate our daily lives without a strong moral compass to power it.
“Humanities therefore is a crucial field that we still have an advantage in,” he said.
Cheah said the youths are not sufficiently trained currently so they should be encouraged and given the support to learn new technologies as well as humanities.
He said the country is currently hampered by a weak financial situation, which is further compounded by the serious problem of youth unemployment of about 10.8 per cent.
“That is why we believe that platforms such as PIBIS are critical to not only highlight the important developments in industry, but also state plans, and to connect government and businesses together for greater synergy,” he said.
He said it is timely now for the industries, stakeholders and governments to work together towards developing the country’s youths for a better future.
PIBIS was organised by ISI as a connecting platform between the state government and private sector to discuss fundamental issues and future plans in Penang.
ISI is an organisation that functions as a connector between government and business leaders across Asia and it also acts as a platform for capital raising and investment activities in Asia.
