Experts: AI reshaping global workforce, with China's practice in focus

Editor's note: At the recent AI Action Summit in Paris, Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing underscored China's commitment to fostering ​AI inclusiveness​ and global collaboration. This article, co-authored by ​LinkedIn's Chief Economic Opportunity Officer Aneesh Raman​ and ​its China Country Manager Wang Qian (Nancy Wang), seeks to amplify this vision by exploring how AI is reshaping the global workforce and why China's approach to ​democratizing innovation​ offers a blueprint for sustainable, inclusive growth.

The article reflects the authors' opinions and not necessarily the views of CGTN.

From 'knowledge economy' to 'innovation economy'

The rise of AI marks a fundamental shift from the "knowledge economy" to an "innovation economy," where uniquely human skills like creativity, empathy and cross-cultural collaboration become central to growth.

The knowledge economy is the economy we've been in since the rise of computing and the internet in the 1990s. In the knowledge economy, our intellectual abilities and our technical skills have been core to work and are what have propelled our economies forward. 

The innovation economy is what comes next. The innovation economy emerging out of AI will mean, for the first time ever, human innovation – not technological capabilities – will be core to work and the driver of economic growth. Human innovation comes from our uniquely human skills – skills I like to call the 5 Cs: creativity, curiosity, courage, compassion and communication. These are the skills that allow us to come up with new ideas that challenge the status quo and the skills that drive us to build new teams, new companies and even imagine entirely new industries. These are skills AI can help amplify but can't replace.

The knowledge economy we're in now, where computer science and STEM skills have been the dominant skill set in the job market, has relegated our social and emotional abilities to the back burner as "soft skills." But we're entering a new moment where the core skills companies need are shifting – up to 70 percent by 2030 for all jobs on average. The reality now is that, as technologies like AI and robotics come in and take on a lot of the intellectual and physical aspects of work, our uniquely human skills – like empathy, leadership, collaboration – are actually becoming the new "hard skills." The job market is going to place much greater emphasis and value on these skills in the coming years as AI advances, so now is the moment for anyone who hasn't focused on them yet to get started.

Generative AI redefined 'being human at work'

The story of work has always been the story of technology and tools, not humans.

For centuries, work was about our physical abilities on farms and then again in the factories with the rise of the industrial revolutions. It's only been the past couple of decades that work has been about our intellectual abilities in today's knowledge economy. Now, the rise of AI at work is pushing us once again into a new era for the economy – an innovation economy where human innovation and our uniquely human skills like social and emotional intelligence will finally be core to work and core to economic growth. 

Seeing AI's vast capabilities at work over the past couple of years has pushed many to ask: What's left for humans? But that's the wrong question. We all need to start asking instead, what's possible for humans? What's finally possible when we free ourselves up from tedious tasks that don't ask much of us and instead focus on the work that allows us all to innovate, collaborate and create in new ways? Asking what's possible for your job or for your company transforms your approach to AI and unearths a lot of exciting opportunities.

My biggest advice to everyone is do not be fearful; be curious. If you are curious, you will be better off as long as you every day are learning more things and leaning into this moment of change.

AI changed the systems of work

AI is spurring a fundamental reset in that entire system when it comes to how we hire and what things we look for in a candidate.

The labor market has always been a broken and inefficient system when it comes to matching talent and opportunity. For most of human history, we inherited work like the genes that determine our heights. Jobs are changing so fast that pedigree signals we've long relied on, such as where you went to school or what big-name company you've worked for in the past, are no longer useful predictors of future success in a job. 

Instead, employers are shifting towards skills as the new key signal. There's been momentum on both sides of the job market for this shift to skills, with LinkedIn members adding new skills at a rate that's 140 percent higher compared to 2022, and 60 percent of executives in the U.S. now agreeing there are better ways to train and develop workers unrelated to a four-year degree.

AI is also emerging as a tool that will make skills-based matching at scale a reality, with new AI-powered features on LinkedIn like Job Match and LinkedIn Hiring Assistant making it easier for both candidates and recruiters to more clearly see how someone's skills match up to open roles. 

AI to democratize innovation globally

AI will help democratize innovation in a way we've never seen before. AI is good at a lot of things, but where it is set to have the biggest impact is in helping people sitting on great ideas and great inventions finally bring those ideas to life. 

The biggest thing you should think about AI is that it's going to unleash a whole new wave of companies. AI is a tool that you can bring into the day-to-day work for employees for existing companies. But AI is about to be this thing that unleashes entrepreneurship everywhere. The ability to build a business has never been easier than it is now because you can use AI to build new companies. 

AI can be your sounding board, your co-founder, your coder and your editor in executing that new project or prototyping that new product. You don't need to be an Einstein or come from an entrepreneurial background to bring a big idea to life with these tools. AI will also help unleash ideas that can potentially solve the world's most pressing challenges, from climate change to healthcare. Think about what happens when an entrepreneur in Brazil can prototype a climate technology solution without needing a full engineering team. Or when a teacher in rural India can build and deploy an educational platform without needing to write code. Or when a researcher in Nigeria can run sophisticated experiments without a fully equipped lab.

If you're a company that isn't taking risks, the biggest risk isn't even just the companies that are your size that are adapting when you're not. It's the new companies that are coming, who are building with AI at the center, who are going to come disrupt your business if you're not ready for it. 

Note: Below are answers from Wang in a written interview.

China's AI technology to share with world 

China has achieved remarkable progress in AI technology R&D (research and development) and industrial applications. As a global professional networking platform, LinkedIn data indicates that ​58 percent of enterprises worldwide plan to adopt AI tools by 2025, with Chinese companies actively building ​AI-driven talent strategies​ to enhance organizational agility and cross-border collaboration capabilities. For instance, in sectors like ​new energy and smart manufacturing, Chinese firms are optimizing global R&D resource allocation through AI, fostering knowledge sharing and innovation synergy.

Technology inclusivity requires multi-stakeholder collaboration. Chinese tech enterprises are demonstrating leadership in ​supply chain optimization and green technology, leveraging platforms like LinkedIn to disseminate advanced solutions globally. This value-driven approach to addressing global challenges – such as sustainability and equitable access – highlights China's role as a pivotal force in shaping a tech-enabled, sustainable future.

AI technology for global inclusiveness

We firmly believe that AI technology is not only an engine for driving business transformation but also a critical tool for addressing systemic societal challenges. In tackling issues like educational inequality and regional development disparities, AI can build more inclusive solutions through technological accessibility and data-driven insights. From a corporate perspective, AI empowers progress in the following ways:

· Democratizing educational resources and enabling personalized learning. AI-powered recommendation systems help professionals in remote areas identify tailored skill development paths, providing customized learning content to break geographical barriers in traditional education.

· Facilitating regional talent mobility and skill sharing. Companies leverage AI-driven global recruitment tools that can efficiently tap into international talent pools, promoting cross-regional skill transfer and supporting industrial upgrades.

· Empowering professionals to navigate. Mastering AI co-working capabilities, such as leveraging generative AI for problem-solving or ethical decision-making, is essential to transforming technology into productivity.

(Cover from VCG; text edited by CGTN's Zhao Chenchen)