Navigating AI as a career path is a carefully thought-through process that requires constant upskilling as the advancements of this technology grow rapidly. Sharing a forum from the recent International Digital Economy Conference Sarawak (IDECS), it is even more vital to be in line with the technology as Sarawak adopts digitalisation.
Taking every challenge as a learning opportunity
The future for digitalisation in Sarawak is vast, and with emerging opportunities, navigating the workforce towards career paths aligned with these advancements is crucial.
Sharing more about the developments during the recent International Digital Economy Conference Sarawak, deputy pro vice chancellor at Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak Campus, Professor Dr Ida Fatimawati Adi Badiozaman, chaired a forum about ‘Navigating AI as a career path’.
The forum classified under ‘She-Tech’ aims to empower women in the process. Also invited to the discussion were Sarawak Energy Berhad, chief digital officer, Sim Ko Sin; Endava Malaysia, head of project delivery management, Angelina Liew; and Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) dean of the Faculty of Computer Science and Information Technology, Professor Dr Jane Labadin.
As the AI market swiftly grows, there will be evident changes that evolve at a rapid stage. Elaborating further, Dr Ida said that there is a demand for AI talent in the fields of automation, healthcare, finance, and clean energy.
Looking at the Sarawak context, Sim revealed that there are opportunities for AI talent in the agriculture sector and medical healthcare line.
“There is a future in AI for these sectors as the technology helps in recognising images and patterns. They actually help us accelerate the current resources that we have limited, especially in Sarawak.
“We can leverage our technology to help us innovate faster and be more creative, and we are able to reach out to a new age of technologies that can place us in a good position going forward,” she explained.
Sharing an example from her work in Sarawak Energy, where the tech team applied selective AI, Sim expressed ease as the tool helped the company predict failures.
By using selective AI, it assists Sim and her team to implement early warning systems, predict maintenance, asset performance, and others.
Meanwhile, Liew from Endava Malaysia added that there are a lot of opportunities where the private sector is taking a lot of initiative to participate aggressively with institutions.
In Endava, Liew disclosed that the company has over 11,000 employees across 26 countries. “In Europe, we have already started to work with education institutions and curate programmes or internship programmes with universities to ensure there is continuity in terms of career advancement because we believe that the transition into the AI industry is a crucial step.”
With Endava Malaysia being a software development company, Liew expressed the importance of harnessing talents in the tech field by shaping the interest and encouraging the advancements for those wanting to pursue a career in the field.
“So there’s a lot in place in terms of initiatives that we are doing on a global scale and also in the regional scale, to hopefully empower a lot more involvement,” she said, sharing about the global picture for opportunities in the career of AI.
Important core skills to have
With years of experience in the tech industry under her belt, Sim shared that the most important core skill for someone intending to pursue the digital field is the ability to analyse data.
“You need to be sensitive with data. So the general role typically is looking at analytics, data analytics, data flow, as well as engineering — machine learning engineering.”
Other important core skills are the ones related to programming and data science. However, fundamentally, Sim opined that having the appetite for curiosity is as important as the others.
Meanwhile, Dr Jane added that soft skills, such as communication skills, are important too.
“Why do we need communication skills? Well, because you will be dealing with clients later on. So at the university side, at the undergraduate level, you will need to build this up, to build the confidence of people. You will not be playing with data because data will only come from the client.”
Another important skill to have is a sense of teamwork. “You will be talking to programmers, those who design the solution itself, and so on. So all of this is very important. Besides, knowledge of mathematics, computer science, logical thinking, and problem-solving skills are crucial too,” said the UNIMAS professor.
Will AI replace jobs?
Asked about the billion-dollar question, “Will AI eventually replace jobs?”, Liew opined that there is a diverse range of work that is available.
“There are also other opportunities. Now there’s a large language module, generative AI, coming in, AI specialists who work with tools like GPT that create unique skills. So there are a huge number of roles.”
To answer the question, Liew gave a resounding no, because with the development of AI technology, more job opportunities will arise.
“There are a lot of jobs when it comes to AI. Project management, cybersecurity. There are a lot of opportunities out there, depending on what roles you are aiming for. Don’t worry, we just have to constantly learn so that we can continue to stay ahead of the curve.”
Adding onto her statement, Dr Jane emphasised the importance of upskilling oneself. Giving the idea, she said that there are many online courses available to upskill.
“There will always be new developments in technology every day. Learn how you can assist your company, because people are moving very fast with technology, so we need to keep up.”
But the journey to navigate a career in AI is challenging, Liew conceded. “It is how you navigate through these challenges that will make the difference. My biggest challenge, personally, is the sheer amount of information. AI is such a broad topic, covering computer science, natural language processing, neural networks, large language models, and all this. And it can be overwhelming.”
Nevertheless, she advised those in the field to approach things with a growth mindset, to focus on the incremental value or incremental progress, and to take every challenge as a learning opportunity.
“AI constantly has new trends and new emerging tools coming out. Thankfully, there are a lot of free resources out there. There are platforms like Amazon, AWS, and Google that provide a lot of free resources.”
To conclude the discussion, navigating AI as a career path involves a multifaceted process that requires continuous learning, adaptability, and a deep understanding of both technical and ethical implications.
As technology evolves rapidly, staying updated with the latest advancements, honing problem-solving skills, and maintaining a strong foundation in mathematics, data science, and programming is essential.
Equally important is addressing concerns around AI’s impact on society, which calls for a commitment to responsible and inclusive AI development.
