The Covid-19 global pandemic emphasised the importance of keeping up with technology with numerous organisations across the globe transitioning to work remotely. Workers being homebound was cost-saving in that employers at the time had no obligation to rent offices or supply water, electricity and other resources.
However, Makhosazana Bambisa revealed at an AI convention hosted by the International Women's Forum of South Africa in Bryanston on 21 August that productivity during that period was at an all-time low as employees who suddenly found themselves working from home, were inactive in virtual meetings.
READ: Netflix boosts Wits School of Arts with 140 Mac laptops
The IWFSA Fasset Women Leadership Programme alumni also shared that a study conducted by McKinsey & Company proved that 70% of companies undergoing digital transformation reported challenges in maintaining a strong organisational culture.
The same study highlighted that organisations with strong, adaptive cultures are 2.5 times more likely to achieve high performance and growth than those who struggle with cultural alignment.
There is no AI without the history and knowledge fed to technological devices by human beings. This is where it becomes pivotal to not leave older workers behind when companies navigate technological advances. Similar to junior employees imbibing knowledge from their seniors, the success of AI lies in the context of human intelligence.
To prove this theory, Dr. Yakut Gazi from Duke University's Learning Innovation and Digital Education referenced Melissa, a robotic arm that successfully performed hip replacement surgery on an elderly patient.
She explained:
The data inputted by humans was the driving force behind the success of the surgery. For example, Melissa's hand did not shake because of nervousness like a human hand would because, as a robot, she doesn't feel these emotions. She worked purely off of the data that was fed to her, but it's important to note that when the anaesthesia wore off; it was the human medical staff and not the robotic arm that was there to reassure the family. Had Melissa malfunctioned, the onus would have also fallen on humans to take over and complete the surgery.
By 2035, Gazi added, projections are such that robotics will be able to undertake all existing medical procedures. The panellists unpacked the popular belief that AI was a threat to jobs, highlighting that adaptability could be a worthwhile tool. As some jobs become obsolete, new jobs will continue to emerge.
For South Africa, technology being accessible to any device in any space could translate to the outsourcing of critical skills from the United Kingdom, China and other advanced countries. However, the inaccessibility of data in under-resourced townships and rural areas threatens to be a hindrance to the level of digital literacy in these communities.
Among the over 40% unemployed South African youth is the Gen-Z who grew up in a digital era, some of whom is more technologically savvy than employed members of the workforce. Raising community awareness around AI and technology, therefore, needs to be a collective effort.
READ: Huawei SA and Henley Business School give women entrepreneurs a leg-up with digital skills training
Human intelligence skills and innovations to solve social challenges call for literary programmes to understand artificial intelligence from an organisational perspective. Although some entities are already embarking on such ventures, AI's effectiveness largely depends on the ability of humans to access and refine the tools that are already available.
For this country to arrive at such an ability, a shift from the said tools being exclusive to suburbia and private schools is urgently required.
