Vivienne Ming says schools and hiring should focus on skills AI cannot copy

In short: A new book argues that as AI takes over more routine work, schools and employers should put more effort into teaching and hiring for human strengths like flexibility, empathy, and creative thinking.

What's going on

Vivienne Ming, a neuroscientist and entrepreneur, makes this case in her book Robot-Proof: When Machines Have All the Answers, Build Better People. She says the job market is moving toward a future where AI changes many careers that used to require long training, like law, medicine, and finance.

Ming argues this will “deprofessionalize” some jobs, meaning work that once needed a highly paid specialist could be broken into simpler tasks and done by lower paid workers. She compares parts of these jobs to a production line, where the work is more repeatable and closely guided.

To stay valuable, Ming says people will need “meta-learning” skills. She uses this phrase to mean learnable abilities like switching between different kinds of problems, remembering and using information, handling setbacks, thinking of many possible answers, and understanding other people. Her message is that these skills can be taught, but schools often focus too much on test results, and employers often hire using shortcuts like prestige or credentials.

She also suggests using “data trusts” (a legal way to pool data safely, like putting information in a shared vault with rules) so researchers can study work and education without leaving data locked inside companies.

What to watch

The book also gives practical advice on using tools like ChatGPT. Ming suggests not letting AI do your thinking, but using it to challenge your ideas after you have formed them, like a debate partner. If schools and employers take this approach seriously, expect more focus on projects and real problem-solving, and less focus on memorizing for tests.

Source: Financial Times