Looking to get a better handle on the evolving impact that generative AI is having on your industry, and potentially your career?

This will help. LinkedIn has partnered with parent company Microsoft to provide a new overview of the AI landscape, and how these advanced tools are changing the workforce as we know it.

And while you’re likely aware of the rising AI impact, having additional context on the actual scope of professional transformation could provide you with more impetus to learn these systems, and how to use them to your benefit.

First off, the report notes that the use of generative AI has nearly doubled in the last six months, with 75% of global knowledge workers now using AI tools in their regular process.

That’s not overly surprising, but the real test is how helpful these tools can be, and what people are actually using them for. A worker using ChatGPT once every now and then to come up with an idea isn’t a major shift, but referring to an AI bot every day is significant, and that context is somewhat missed by this question.

But even so, 75% is a very high number, which underlines the importance of AI tools and their potential in the modern workforce.

Yet, at the same time, 53% of people who use AI at work also worry that using it on important work tasks could make them look replaceable.

It’s a difficult balance, but the idea of AI tools is not to replace humans (in most cases), but to supplement, and provide assistance to refine specific tasks. AI outputs alone are generally not enough to fill-in for actual human expertise, but they can streamline many processes, which should lead to significant workplace efficiency.

And as you would expect, younger users are more actively adopting the new wave of AI apps.

That further points to future shifts, because as these youngsters grow up in a world where generative AI exists, they’ll increasingly find new uses for it, which will then lead to broader reliance on AI in the workforce.

And clearly, hiring managers are already factoring this in:

If you’re not at least aware of how the latest AI tools could assist in your work, then you need to increase your knowledge, and ensure that you’re across the disruption that these apps are causing in your sector.

The report also looks at which job roles are adding AI skills, based on LinkedIn data.

Of course, not everyone is updating their LinkedIn profile to reflect such, but the graph gives you some idea of which areas AI is having an impact, at least in terms of prompting members to improve their knowledge.

There are also some further LinkedIn data points included in the report:

• In the past six months, the use of LinkedIn Learning courses designed to build AI aptitude has spiked 160% among non-technical professionals, with roles like project managers, architects, and administrative assistants looking to skill up most.
• We’ve also seen a 142x increase in LinkedIn members globally adding AI skills like ChatGPT and Copilot to their profiles - with writers, designers, and marketers topping the list.
• LinkedIn job posts that mention artificial intelligence or generative AI have seen 17% greater application growth over the past two years compared to job posts that don’t mention them. 

The report provides an interesting snapshot of the current AI landscape, and the disruption that AI is causing in various industries.

But the bottom line, and likely the main intention of the report, is that you need to be upping your knowledge of generative AI tools, and how they’re impacting your industry.

At the least, you need to understand the potential, as hiring managers are increasingly seeking those with AI skills and knowledge.

You can download the full report here.