As generative artificial intelligence (AI) software becomes increasingly embedded in every form of business activity, it will boost productivity to a level that may generate as much as $4.4 trillion in value to the global economy, according to a new report.
“Generative A.I. could add the equivalent of $2.6 trillion to $4.4 trillion annually across the 63 use cases we analyzed," stated the 68-page report from McKinsey Global Institute.
The accelerated development of generative AI tools will result in half of all work becoming automated between 2030 and 2060, the analysts added, saying:
“Generative AI has the potential to change the anatomy of work, augmenting the capabilities of individual workers by automating some of their individual activities.”
As to the potential economic benefits, 75% of this could purportedly come from four use cases:
Customer operations, where generative AI may be used for automated natural language interactions with customers - something already used in 50% of customer contacts by US banking, telecommunications and utility companies.
Marketing and sales, where AI can generate personalized messages tailored to individual customer interests.
Software engineering: to accelerate the coding process.
Product Research & Development (R&D), whereby AI models are used by, for example, the chemical industry, for accelerating the development of new drugs and materials.
Generative AI, with its chatbots such as ChatGPT that can generate text based on prompts, analyzed in potential use across some 850 occupations, could boost productivity by between 0.1% and 0.6% over the next 20 years, the report said.
Screenshot of chart showing projected higher productivity and profits that AI will bring in a report from McKinsey Global Institute.
© Photo : McKinsey Global Institute analysis
The AI tools able to also generate videos and images have been at the heart of a raging debate regarding the effects they may have upon the job market and the global economy. There have been warnings that AI could take over people's jobs, might start spreading misinformation, and even pose an "existential threat to humanity." British-Canadian computer scientist Geoffrey Hinton, known popularly as the “Godfather of AI,” suggested that AI “could get more intelligent than us and could decide to take over.”
To a degree, the new report fed into these concerns, conceding that regulators would need to address the likelihood that content generated by the AI tools can be misleading and inaccurate. But, as AI will help workers automate tasks, it will create “superpowers” for high-skilled workers, Lareina Yee, a McKinsey partner and an author of the report, stated.
“The most profound change we are going to see is the change to people, and that’s going to require far more innovation and leadership than the technology,” she added.
Interestingly, the advent of the new AI technology will leave the most educated workforce more vulnerable, said the authors of the report. This is a stark contrast to how previously the advent of new technology impacted people with lower educational qualifications, performing more physical tasks.
Screenshot of chart showing share of work that can be automated by AI, by education level of employee, in a report from McKinsey Global Institute.
© Photo : McKinsey Global Institute analysis
"The scale and the scope of the workforce transitions described in this report are considerable…About a quarter to a third of work activities could change in the coming decade. The task before us is to manage the potential positives and negatives of the technology simultaneously,” concluded the McKinsey report.
The hope-inspiring report citing the huge benefits of AI technology, which is making tremendous strides, comes as a not inconsiderable number of AI experts and tech celebrities have been warning about potential risks associated with artificial intelligence development. Tesla CEO Elon Musk, AI pioneers Yoshua Hengio and Stuart Russell, joined a cohort of like-minded scholars to sign a letter in April calling for a six-month pause on the development of more powerful AI systems.
“AI systems with human-competitive intelligence can pose profound risks to society and humanity, as shown by extensive research and acknowledged by top AI labs,” the document noted.
However, those behind the latest McKinsey report laud the huge potential of the rapidly evolving technology. They pointed out that AI’s uncharted “risks” can be duly assessed, with measures developed to mitigate them. “If you could capture even a third” of what the technology’s potential is, “it is pretty remarkable over the next five to 10 years,” Lareina Yee, one of the authors of the report, enthused.