According to Scott Belsky, Adobe’s chief strategy officer, AI will not lead to mass unemployment but will actually spur more hiring. He believes that AI enables “more ingenuity per person,” which leads to companies wanting to do more and thus hiring more people. Belsky has witnessed how graphic designers are adopting AI features in Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator that save them significant amounts of time, and he believes that this increased efficiency will not result in fewer jobs for creatives but instead allow them to focus on more strategic and creative tasks.
Belsky explained how introducing a contextual task bar in Adobe Photoshop, based on an idea from the Illustrator for iPad app, has transformed the software and received high adoption rates. He believes that graphic designers do not want to spend unnecessary time on tasks that can be accomplished much faster with AI. Instead, they will use their new-found time to run more A/B tests and explore different possibilities, ultimately coming up with better solutions.
Belsky also argues that companies themselves will benefit from increased efficiency due to AI, leading to expansion and the ability to take on more projects. He believes that companies want to build more products, features, and marketing campaigns in order to grow their business, and having more efficient processes through AI allows them to do so. Belsky sees this as a natural human tendency driven by capitalism.
It’s not just Belsky who holds this optimistic view on AI and jobs. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang also believes that AI will create more jobs, as companies that improve productivity are likely to expand into new areas and thus require more employees. However, Elon Musk takes a darker view on AI, stating that it is the most disruptive force in human history and that it will eventually eliminate the need for jobs entirely.
In addition to driving more hiring, Belsky sees AI as a great opportunity for smaller companies to compete against larger ones. AI can provide smaller companies with capabilities usually enjoyed by bigger corporations, such as data analysis, marketing, and content creation. Belsky emphasizes that smaller companies can have great businesses as a result of AI technology.