Will creativity become more valued by the market than technical skills? \ stacker news ~econ

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Will creativity become more valued by the market than technical skills?www.wsj.com/opinion/how-to-live-in-the-age-of-ai-creativity-bdc1361e?st=kZZxYG&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink

3154 sats \ 46 comments \ @SimpleStacker 22 Mar econ

Here's an interesting letter to the WSJ arguing that it will be. The letter is short, so I copy it in its entirety:

“Parents in Tech Engineer a Career Switch for Their Kids” (Personal Journal, March 10) highlights an important shift in workforce priorities, but it overlooks those caught in the middle: new college graduates entering industries where artificial intelligence is rapidly reshaping jobs. For most of my time in school, science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM, was prioritized over the arts. However, many STEM graduates now find their work automated before they’ve even settled into a career. What once took weeks of coding can now be done in minutes, leaving many wondering: Where do we add value?

From my perspective, creativity is the ultimate job security. AI can generate, but it can’t originate. The professionals who will thrive in this new era aren’t simply those who can use AI tools but those who bring new ideas to the table—whether in STEM, the arts or business. AI still needs someone to prompt it. Be that person. The future belongs to those who think beyond automation.

The old adage amongst Asian parents like myself is that choosing a creative career is risky. That if you want a more secure job, learn engineering, medicine, law, or business.

But now that AI can do so much of the technical work, is the demand for creatives in the marketplace going to see a resurgence?

It's a very relevant question as I have teenage children. I am sort of pushing them to double up... be technically proficient in STEM skills, but keep developing your interest and skills in the creative subjects as well.

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235 sats \ 9 replies \ @elvismercury 23 Mar

The skill of collaboration with machines is, IMO, the most important skill. The idea that you can know nothing at all about the domain, and that AI will do it all and do it well, is an illusion. It will stay an illusion, and if it doesn't, it will mean that humanity has serious, serious problems, at which point choice of career will be irrelevant.

In my own experience, figuring out what it takes to collaborate, and to learn, is a deep, deep well. It's giant alpha waiting for people.

52 sats \ 2 replies \ @SimpleStacker OP 23 Mar

I agree with that. But it remains to be seen how much domain expertise you'll need to collaborate effectively with the machine... or whether AI collaboration is actually an orthogonal set of skills. I imagine there's an element of both... an orthogonal component as well as a component that requires domain knowledge. It'll be both interesting and scary to see how it plays out.

30 sats \ 1 reply \ @k00b 23 Mar

whether AI collaboration is actually an orthogonal set of skills

If the trajectory continues and collaborating with machines requires less and less domain expertise, the orthogonal components will be more important. But which orthogonal components will be more important? Probably things most supplemental to what machines are able to do? At the limit, I imagine articulating personal/human desire is all that's left (if anything is left).

55 sats \ 0 replies \ @SimpleStacker OP 23 Mar

Setting good objectives. I think about Star Trek a lot. The computer is super useful and can do a lot, but the humans are still the main characters

55 sats \ 5 replies \ @k00b 23 Mar

I'm not sure if you intended it, but this advice even back tests well.

0 sats \ 4 replies \ @elvismercury 23 Mar

Meaning: figuring out collaboration + learning is a good strategy in any era? If so, I didn't have it in mind, but agree that it's true historically.

27 sats \ 3 replies \ @k00b 23 Mar

Specifically, "the skill of collaboration with machines is the most important skill" seems like timeless advice.

0 sats \ 2 replies \ @supratic 23 Mar

Technology is just a tool at our service... learn how to use it! It's not someone we can collaborate with.

Is like saying in the 19th century that collaborating with cars was the most important skill to learn. I can understand collaborating with horses, but with cars...

0 sats \ 1 reply \ @k00b 23 Mar

I do not use language like math or as it’s used in law. Feel free to replace “machines” with “tools” and “collaboration” with “using” if it suits your senses better.

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92 sats \ 10 replies \ @Undisciplined 22 Mar

There's tons of creativity at the higher levels of STEM. What will be automated are the jobs that just implementing "best practices".

Like the letter says, anyone originating solutions to novel problems or researching new questions will continue having opportunities for valuable contributions.

The other area that I think will continue being human jobs are those requiring interpersonal skills.

42 sats \ 9 replies \ @SimpleStacker OP 22 Mar

But what percent of the STEM majors learn and display that kind of creativity in their field? This might be why it's getting harder to get a STEM job with just an undergraduate degree(?)

The other area that I think will continue being human jobs are those requiring interpersonal skills.

Fine motor physical skills too. Home health aide is a booming industry.

51 sats \ 8 replies \ @Undisciplined 22 Mar

Very few are creative. They're the Oompa Loompa's of science.

Really, there will be lots of stuff that we never thought of. Comparative advantage can be hard to predict: for example, there was a period in the 80's when South Korea dominated wig production (who could have predicted that?).

24 sats \ 7 replies \ @SimpleStacker OP 22 Mar

creativity is also a skill that needs to be practiced, and I think you just don't get enough of that opportunity in undergrad

Maybe that will change though as departments tailor their curriculums to the age of AI

30 sats \ 6 replies \ @Undisciplined 22 Mar

I could see that. More contests and challenges. Fewer exams with known answers.

29 sats \ 5 replies \ @SimpleStacker OP 22 Mar

At my university we've got two forces pushing in opposite directions. Tailoring curriculum to AI pushes towards more creative assignments but it's hard to grade. Funding challenges on the other hand is pushing toward larger class sizes which pushes towards easier to grade multiple choice assignments

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54 sats \ 15 replies \ @Satosora 22 Mar

You are asian?

55 sats \ 13 replies \ @SimpleStacker OP 22 Mar

Yes I'm what could be called an ABC

30 sats \ 8 replies \ @Satosora 22 Mar

a banana! lol

10 sats \ 7 replies \ @SimpleStacker OP 22 Mar

Indeed, we often called ourselves that. I don't actually feel white on the inside though haha

30 sats \ 6 replies \ @Satosora 22 Mar

Which area of study were you pushed into? Did you want to pursue one of the arts?

10 sats \ 5 replies \ @SimpleStacker OP 22 Mar

Electrical engineering, though not necessarily by my parents. Culturally it's just what I was told is the smart thing to do

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30 sats \ 3 replies \ @cryotosensei 22 Mar

那你会中文吗？

24 sats \ 2 replies \ @SimpleStacker OP 22 Mar

我會一點

30 sats \ 1 reply \ @cryotosensei 22 Mar

Cool. I have a silly grin on my face rn

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @SimpleStacker OP 22 Mar

Always nice to have cross cultural engagement on the internet!

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30 sats \ 0 replies \ @cryotosensei 22 Mar

That was the first question that came to my mind haha

61 sats \ 4 replies \ @denlillaapan 22 Mar

Quite possibly, yeah.

I do enjoy the flippening in general: manual labor more secure than office jobs, non-tradeable services more valuable than easily outsourced ones

30 sats \ 2 replies \ @gmd 22 Mar

Until robots...

42 sats \ 1 reply \ @SimpleStacker OP 22 Mar

Some physical tasks are surprisingly hard to automate, like folding clothes haha

30 sats \ 0 replies \ @gmd 22 Mar

That sounds like it will be trivial soon enough...

Now twisting under a sink or squeezing through a wall to do plumbing or electrical wiring...

12 sats \ 0 replies \ @SimpleStacker OP 22 Mar

I definitely see the skilled trades making a resurgence as a respectable and desirable path for a young person to take

30 sats \ 0 replies \ @OT 23 Mar

It's not like there's an abundance of jobs in the arts.

I think that creativity is a good "skill" to practice. Some people say they just don't have it, but I think its more about allowing rules to be broken or being open to trying something new.

30 sats \ 2 replies \ @cryotosensei 22 Mar

I disagree. Just because AI is getting more prevalent doesn’t mean tech skills will be relegated to the side. Sure, the mediocre executives and engineers will find it hard to compete against AI tools, but those who rise to the top in science and engineering fields manage to do so because they know how to leverage AI to solve complex problems.

I also think the extent to which creativity is prized depends on the structure of the society. I won’t say that Singapore is largely conformist, but I do think that if someone is too unorthodox (too creative), he will be judged as someone who “rocks the boat”. Do I wanna unleash my full creativity when I arrive at a new job? Probably not. I will adopt a wait-and-see mentality first. Unless I encounter an existing process that I think is so stupid that I feel like I will be doing myself an injustice by keeping quiet

24 sats \ 1 reply \ @SimpleStacker OP 22 Mar

It's true that tech skills are still needed, but I wonder if there will be any good jobs that only require such skills. I think you used to be able to make a pretty good living just by coding up other people's ideas, but I wonder if that's still gonna be possible

30 sats \ 0 replies \ @cryotosensei 23 Mar

I agree that these days, you need creative computational thinking to thrive. See not just the problem, but how it is embedded within a system. And tackle systemic issues in novel ways