Artificial intelligence is fundamentally changing the way we work - not by replacing us, but by enabling us. The real change is not in the technology itself, but in the way we use it.
Fear of job losses is nothing new. Over a hundred years ago, Henry Ford introduced the assembly line, halving the time it took to build a car to 90 minutes. The reaction: fears of mass unemployment and monotonous work. But just the opposite happened - productivity rose, new jobs were created and wages doubled.
Ford coined the phrase: "Man minus the machine is a slave; man plus the machine is a free man". These words still ring true today. Even as AI takes over repetitive processes, humans remain essential for strategic and creative decisions.
A key difference between humans and machines is judgement. AI can analyse huge amounts of data and recognise patterns, but it does not understand cause-and-effect relationships. Humans, on the other hand, make decisions with incomplete information - based on experience, intuition and logical thinking.
At the Swiss Safety Centre, we rely on a combination of humans and AI. The inspector plays the central role in our technical inspections throughout Switzerland. AI provides support by analysing and processing large amounts of data, but the final assessment remains in human hands.
AI is not a replacement for humans, but a tool that optimises everyday working life. Progress cannot be stopped - but those willing to adapt will find new opportunities. The key question is not whether AI will take over jobs, but how we integrate the technology into our working lives in a meaningful way.