Are There Jobs That AI Can’t Replace?

Recently, a worried college graduate asked me if there were any jobs that AI couldn’t replace. While I understood his concerns, I realized the question needed some tweaking. Instead of asking about specific jobs, it’s more helpful to identify the functions across industries that AI cannot perform.

The AI takeover seems mostly unfounded. According to the World Economic Forum’s latest Future of Jobs Report, 50% of organizations expect AI to drive job growth. That said, the most competitive professionals in the future will be those who possess uniquely human skills that AI cannot replicate. Here are some of those skills and how they can be applied.

Offering Empathy

When you think about jobs requiring empathy, therapists and social workers may be the first roles that come to mind, but in fact, empathy is a key trait for so many professions. I think about one of my college professors, and the way she calmly listened to our frustrations when we couldn’t solve a certain problem. I think about the nurse who made one of my sons feel less scared of getting a shot.

An empathetic person is a source of comfort and reassurance that can’t be replaced by an AI-powered tool. One study looked at people’s feelings of “being heard” after receiving a response from either AI or a human. The researchers found that initially, people felt more heard by the AI-generated messages, indicating that AI can provide emotional support. However, once the participants realized responses were AI-generated, they felt less heard, suggesting that more than anything, people want emotional support from humans.

It’s safe to say that roles requiring high degrees of empathy are safe from AI.

Engaging In Complex Negotiations

In 2021, Walmart Canada began using AI-powered tools to negotiate contracts with many of its 100,000 suppliers. This raised some alarm bells about whether AI would take over business and legal negotiations, but as Martin Rand, CEO and co-founder of Pactum, who helped lead the implementation of AI-based negotiation for Walmart Canada told Forbes, “Instead of replacing human employees, we are eliminating the mundane, low-input aspects of a procurement executive’s job, freeing up time for strategic negotiations.”

AI can handle straightforward negotiations over boilerplate contracts. Humans are still necessary to decide on the constraints and acceptable terms, and review the negotiations once completed. But sophisticated, dynamic negotiation processes will remain safely within the purview of humans. That includes real estate agents, attorneys, event planners, sales executives, project managers, and more.

Creativity And Creative Direction

Wharton professor Christian Terwiesch is an advocate for using ChatGPT to generate ideas.

“It’s cheap. It’s fast. It’s good. What’s not to be liked? Worst case is you reject all of the ideas and run with your own. But our research speaks strongly to the fact that your idea pool will get better,” said Terwiesch.

ChatGPT and other LLMs are a great resource for brainstorming. You can use them to come up with a killer headline. You can use them to help identify profitable startup ideas. But at the end of the day, humans are uniquely capable of doing meaningful creative work and making final decisions about that work.

AI might be able to imitate Dostoevsky’s voice, but it couldn’t have written Crime and Punishment. It might be able to write music based on musical theory, but it couldn’t independently create the ominous music that made Jaws so scary.

It’s a matter of taste, experience-based expertise, and point of view—all things that AI cannot replicate.

Leading (Other Humans)

AI is objective. It doesn’t play favorites. It can quickly synthesize massive amounts of information and make data-based projections. You could say that AI possesses leadership qualities. But when employees are looking for guidance, motivation, or inspiration, a human leader has a leg-up every time.

In a survey of 600-plus employees across multiple industries, researchers found that humans prefer to be led by other humans, even though people can be flawed and messy. The majority of people surveyed said they had limited trust that AI could understand human behavior at work. 69% agreed or strongly agreed that they were concerned about using AI to make decisions about hiring, promotions, and work assignments.

AI may be able to carry out certain tasks typical to leaders, but ultimately, people want other people to lead.

Final Thoughts

Once you have a grasp of the job functions that AI tools can’t perform, the best way to prepare for the future workplace is to continue developing the associated skills.

For roles that require empathy, I’d practice active listening, patience, and questioning my own assumptions. For negotiating, I’d focus on learning how to create value. To become more creative, I’d consume as much creative material as possible. And to become a great leader, I’d try to cultivate the most authentic version of my leadership style. I’d think about leading in a way that reflects my values and vision. And I’d practice trying to know and understand my colleagues in order to work more effectively with them.

Professionals who develop these and other human-centered skills will be best positioned to future-proof their careers.