The rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has led many to question the future of education, especially the value of skilled labor – it’s economic value proposition. For generations, expertise and the time it took to acquire such skills were the cornerstones of economic stability. The path from education to career progression was carefully crafted, as the flow of market entry and retirement allowed room for new recruits, while experienced professionals paved the way. But with AI now able to perform tasks once considered exclusive to humans, is there still a need for skilled education?

Before AI, skills were highly valued because they required years of specialized training and mastery. The structure of industries, from engineering to creative writing, revolved around this. However, the world is rapidly moving toward automation, and AI is beginning to dominate fields that were once believed to be safe from technological disruption. Complex disciplines like engineering, law, medicine, and even creative writing, which required critical thinking and emotional intelligence, are now being tackled by AI systems. What was once thought impossible is now becoming reality.

AI systems don’t require breaks, retirement, or downtime, and as automation continues to evolve, tasks that once demanded human expertise will be handled by these independent agents. Even the notion that directing or managing AI would remain a human stronghold is slowly eroding. With self-learning algorithms and the ability to act as independently functioning entities, AI could one day manage itself better than any human could. 

This fear of a future where labor prices crash due to an overabundance of skill, caused by AI, is one of the driving factors behind proposals for Universal Basic Income (UBI) by individuals like Sam Altman. The concern is that as AI increasingly handles high-skill tasks, humans may find themselves unable to compete in a job market dominated by machines capable of learning and adapting from vast, networked datasets. 

To visualize this future, imagine a mathematician competing against a calculator in a simple multiplication test. The calculator, which doesn’t need to be perfect but only better than the average human, would win effortlessly. This is the scenario experts fear across numerous industries. It’s worth noting that since 1997, when IBM’s Deep Blue defeated world chess champion Garry Kasparov, no human has beaten AI in chess. The point is, it doesn’t take perfection—just an edge over the average human worker—to disrupt an entire field.

Ironically, many African parents in the Baby Boomer generation urged their Millennial children to pursue high-skill degrees, viewing them as guarantees of career security. Yet, in their lifetime, we are witnessing accountants, engineers, and even medical professionals facing greater existential risk than blue-collar trades like plumbing. 

As AI’s capabilities continue to expand, the debate over the future of education and skilled labor becomes more urgent. What will the future of work look like? What role will human skill play in a world where AI can outperform us in both logical and creative tasks? 

To explore this topic from the foundations, join our Candid Conversations and engage with experts and futurists on the subject of education in an AI-driven world on X.