I keep hearing that AI will wipe out loads of jobs. Maybe. But it could also go differently. Perhaps the tasks just shift and new roles emerge. Take the graphic designer who creates logos for clients. Will they be out of work because AI logo tools are just as good — or even better? Depends. Without a precise brief, the result won’t be what the client wants. If all the client cares about is pretty pictures — and those clients exist — the designer should already be looking for new clients who actually value the craft.
These new tools are essentially super-fast, super-smart interns. The graphic designer now has access to the kind of interns that used to only work for big corporations. But that doesn’t mean they can delegate the entire job. They’ll need to brief more carefully and handle the finishing touches so the client is actually happy.
Same goes for writing. When I hand a text to an intern, I can’t specify every detail — that would overwhelm them. I have to hope the first draft goes in the right direction and we can work on improvements together. In the AI world, I can work very constructively on revisions with my intern without worrying about burning them out or getting on their nerves.
I can prepare my AI intern very precisely from the start. That’s a huge advantage that few ChatGPT users are actually exploiting. Instead of asking ChatGPT to “write an article about X,” you can provide incredibly detailed context. Creating that kind of brief takes experience, empathy for the audience, and a clear eye on the motivation and desired outcome. It’s remarkable what ChatGPT delivers when you give the AI intern genuinely tricky tasks. Though this only applies to GPT-4 — GPT-3.5 comes across more like an intern who’s pleasant and polite but not particularly bright or creative.
There’s another angle too: if you’ve got such a smart intern, you might as well ask for their feedback more often. Instead of just giving instructions, try asking: What do you think of this? What would need to change from the audience’s perspective? There’s still massive untapped potential in collaborating with AI interns. So: choose your intern wisely.