How to protect yourself from job obsolescence caused by artificial intelligence?
And, it’s a challenge that needs to be answered. We don’t know how and how quickly AI will be rolled out. However, a Gallup poll released last week showed that nearly a quarter of American workers use artificial intelligence at least a few times a week. We know that agent AI is not the same as generative AI. Generative AI is a transactional, question-and-answer form typically installed on a chatbot that we first saw a few years ago with OpenAI’s ChatGPT. This is still a powerful tool. Agentic AI enables AI to reason, research, plan, control other digital tools, perform actions on your behalf and complete multiple intelligent steps. It has the ability to take on the role of delivering results. It’s much like what a person is hired to do. In our jobs, we are often expected to not only answer individual questions but deliver results and then, where possible, modify our approach to do the job better.
On January 23, I asked the Gemini 3 Pro about being replaced by AI to get its perspective on the topic. Quoting from the There’s An AI For That podcast (January 21, 2026), Gemini stated, “The narrator believes that the biggest mistake people make is trying to stay relevant by completing tasks faster or learning more tools of the industry.” Gemini went on to respond that “True safety in the age of AI comes from shifting your focus from ‘output value ‘(something you do) to’result “value” (the results you deliver and the responsibility you take). To remain irreplaceable in 2026, the video identifies three key strengths of humans: choosing the right problems to solve, making decisions under uncertainty, and taking responsibility. Instead of being a ‘task machine,’ you should be an ‘operator,’ leveraging AI as a lever to manage systems and drive real-world business goals such as revenue and growth.”
In most cases, the decision to implement an AI solution to complete a task previously performed by humans simply comes down to the bottom line of operating costs. AI applications work 24 hours a day, require no insurance benefits, have no vacation or sick time, and are capable of performing a variety of unrelated tasks simultaneously. These characteristics make it more likely that the operating costs of AI will be lower than the indirect costs of human labor over time. Ultimately, value in the workplace will shift from technical execution to judgment, taste, and the ability to translate AI into AI-generated output become useful result. Humanity is still in the loop, as some sources say operator position and others call it coordinator Location. This emerging human position oversees agent AI tools, ensuring accuracy, timeliness, and effectiveness.
The American Career Institute identified 65 career tracks in May 2023 that appear to be less vulnerable to AI disruption—that is, replacement by AI robots based on the abilities, knowledge, skills, and activities required to do a job well. Nurse practitioners, choreographers, and physician assistants top the list, with workforce growth expected to exceed 25% through 2032. Teachers, lecturers and school administrators also ranked high. Overall, the institute believes that social skills, emotional intelligence and interpersonal relationships will take longer to reliably improve in an AI environment than in many other environments that emphasize quantitative skills, such as accounting, which is already undergoing transformation.
For those in the job market, it’s a good idea to regularly monitor areas such as the American Career Institute’s list of job categories that show increases as well as those in areas where employment appears to be decreasing due to the lower cost of artificial intelligence. Continuing professional education may be more important than ever. As AI accelerates advances in work outcomes, the question arises: “What can we do in higher education to ensure our learners remain relevant and valuable in the workforce?”.
I turned to Gemini 3 Pro again to gain insight into how we can deliver relevant learning and help prepare employees/learners for what’s next. Gemini 3 advises students entering college now to “aim to select areas where human judgment, empathy, and physical intervention are the primary added value.” These are best represented by labor forecasts, such as those cited above by the National Institute of Vocational Studies and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
However, for those already committed to a certain field, Gemini raises the possibility of colleges and universities offering dual tracks. “We are entering a ‘Domain + Artificial Intelligence.‘Only’ business or ‘only’ communications degrees are becoming increasingly risky; the most resilient students will be those who combine traditional subjects with Artificial Intelligence Orchestration skills.” The best way to implement this concept may be to add certificate programs in key AI orchestration or operator skills that can be combined with subject-based degrees or other certificate programs.
Gemini 3 then turned to a podcast featuring NVIDIA founder and CEO Jensen Huang, who shared advice on how to stay relevant in the age of artificial intelligence. “Individuals must shift their focus from mastering specific tools to developing high levels of human judgment and domain depth. As AI commoditizes technical skills and common sense, value shifts to those who can navigate the “what” and “why” rather than just the “how.” Huang proposes a four-tiered strategy for remaining indispensable: As your judgment changes Achieve deep domain mastery on those rare occasions, root yourself in “evergreen” fundamentals like systems thinking and physics, master the art of asking high-quality questions, and maintain the emotional resilience to pivot quickly when outdated practices fail. Ultimately, the goal is to become a “learning system” rather than just the holder of a specific position.
How is your college preparing to provide learning opportunities that meet the expectations of the artificial intelligence era? Are your leaders familiar with the role of AI orchestration and the four-tier strategy described above? Can you help develop a program that allows your degree and certificate completers to develop the skills, abilities, and inspiration to stay relevant in the AI workforce of the future?
