March 26, 2024
GEORGETOWN – ALTHOUGH artificial intelligence (AI) will have a big impact on businesses and people’s lives, employees should adapt rather than fear it, say industry experts in George Town, Penang.
Malaysia Semiconductor Industry Association president Datuk Seri Wong Siew Hai said AI would likely replace humans in the supply chain management and production line, but not all jobs would be at risk.
Wong advises workers to embrace AI while preparing to handle jobs that are more complex.“For example, jobs that require emotional intelligence, empathy and personal interaction as well as judgement, like journalism and human resources, are not under threat.
“These jobs involve creativity and innovative problem-solving, which are challenging for AI to replicate,” said Wong.
He also pointed out that jobs such as repair work that needed physical adaptability and dexterity in variable conditions were difficult for AI and robots to perform conclusively.
“The more complex a job is and the more domains it cuts into, the less likely would AI be able to replace humans,” he said.
He explained that the speed and extent of AI adoption would depend on economical and ethical considerations, adaptability of workers and nature of the work.
Wong gave the example of quality control as one area where an AI system with advanced image recognition capabilities, would be a preferred choice.
“Here, AI should be more accurate in predicting when machines will need maintenance, reducing downtime and need for constant human monitoring.
“In supply chain management, AI can handle forecasts, fulfilment and inventory management through data analysis and modelling,” he added.
In 2022, it was reported that there were about 2.72 million people employed in the manufacturing sector in Malaysia, with 590,000 workers alone in the electrical and electronics industry.
Wong thinks the debate on whether AI will replace humans will continue but that people should learn from similar claims about automation in the past.
“In reality, automation actually pushes people to work better and find more value-added functions.
“Those who have a positive perception will embrace it and shift their skills, but this necessitates retraining and upskilling for many workers,” said Wong.
Small and Medium Enterprises Association Malaysia national secretary Yeoh Seng Hooi said employees needed to reskill and upskill themselves to stay relevant, especially those doing manual repetitive jobs.
“When it comes to new development and innovation, you need the human factor as the human mind cannot be replaced.
“We have to start training people to use their thinking cap more, instead of just hard labour,” said Yeoh.
He predicted that fields like warehouse management would likely go the way of AI but that human input for design, sales and marketing was still required.
“In certain departments, the number of employees will go down but pay for skilled workers will increase and the company will still save money,” he said.
Wong and Yeoh’s views come at a time when the impact of AI is a concern, especially on jobs and ethics.
Recently, a list of the 12 most pressing concerns that AI poses to humanity was compiled after a three-day conference in Singapore.
Questions and concerns raised included those on safety standards and spread of fake news through AI.