Creativity, critical thinking stressed amid AI growth

Creativity, critical thinking and adaptability are some of the key factors that both companies and employees should prioritise amid rapid technological advancements, such as automation and Artificial Intelligence (AI).This was revealed Tuesday during Web Summit Qatar’s first talk titled ‘The AI Moment’, which featured Mohamed al-Hardan, head of Tech at Qatar Investment Authority (QIA); and Sachin Dev Duggal, founder and chief wizard at Builder.ai.The discussion, which was moderated by France 24 presenter and journalist Julia Sieger, included topics, such as the impact of AI on employment and how it is expected to automate tasks of certain jobs.According to al-Hardan, structural unemployment may occur in the next decade across the globe as AI is going to further automation and the development of robotics. This also puts the gig economy at risk, he further pointed out.While repetitive tasks could be replaced by AI, al-Hardan emphasised the need for humans to evolve and the need to focus on creativity and "on EQ as opposed to IQ.”"I think jobs are at risk, but not all jobs are at risk. Humans will evolve around the evolution of AI. And I think those that are unable and are not capable of evolving will be left behind,” al-Hardan noted.Duggal, meanwhile, underscored the potential of AI to replace certain tasks and elaborated on the common misconceptions about tasks, jobs and careers, emphasising that these are "very different atomic units of work.”He said the world is "re-entering the DaVinci era,” where polymaths, creativity and critical thinking are more valuable than just having STEM skills.Asked if AI should be regulated, al-Hardan said regulators could face potential issues considering that AI is a rapidly evolving technology and that regulations could limit the further development of Artificial Intelligence.On Builder.ai’s $250mn Series D funding, which was led by QIA, al-Hardan lauded the company’s ability to reduce the cost and the time required to ship an application."Just as Space X reduces the cost of accessing space, Builder.ai is reducing the cost for entrepreneurs, enterprises and founders to access the digital economy,” al-Hardan explained.From a due diligence perspective, al-Hardan noted that QIA is confident that Builder.ai genuinely utilises Artificial Intelligence, unlike other companies that claim to specialise in AI.