Artificial Intelligence and the Job Market

Dr. Clancy advised students who are interested in AI to look at its full range of possibilities. “Students need to ask themselves if they love AI because they feel it's a set of techniques to solve hard and interesting problems, or if they love AI because they are passionate about the grand vision of a ‘thinking’ machine. Personally, I view AI and its success as parts of a larger system. AI can be found in some of what we do at Google, but not everything. AI is part of scanning, but not all of it. Certainly AI can be employed in Web search engines, some not. Shopping comparison sites, or the book recommendations from Amazon use AI [to recommend specific media to repeat shoppers].”

Dr. Clancy suggested that students study robotics because “robotics is imbedded in the physical world. When you're starting out in high school, there's real value in having something that is physically embodied in engaging the world. In the past, robotic behavior was limited, now we're getting to the point where you can get fairly sophisticated behavior at a low cost. I think there's real value in not staying abstract, but to physically develop something that lives, behaves, and acts in the world.”