Most pertinent among disruptions brought about by the Fourth
Industrial Revolution would be the challenges on human labour
being displaced by automation, robotics and AI. The World
Bank estimates that two-thirds of all jobs in the developing
world are susceptible to automation.
Already, AI is disrupting jobs long
considered immune to
technological displacement, such
as white-collar and creative works.
The emergence of technological
advances in the financial sector
now known as FinTech is already
uprooting white-collar work in the
financial sector, displacing
traditional roles in banking and
investment.
AI-driven automation penetrated
the healthcare sector some years
ago, touching areas of medical
expertise such as surgery and
diagnosis – specialisations
previously thought to be bound to
the abilities of a human medical
practitioner.
AI has even moved into spaces
once considered exclusive to
human creativity. Computers are
already able to write articles
indistinguishable from those
written by humans. In the United
States, a tech company called
Narrative Science has successfully
pioneered a natural language
generation software: Quill is a
technology able to transform raw
data into intelligible reports and
articles. This technology has
already been adopted by Forbes for
its corporate earning reports, and
the Associated Press for its
financial and sports reports.
In Indonesia, the government
implements an odd-even policy in
traffic-congested hot spots which
only allows cars with odd-numbered
car plates to enter the city on
odd-numbered calendar dates, and
vice versa. To overcome this
problem, Grab, the popular
ride-hailing service, created a new
algorithm to recognise the date,
time, location, and car plate
number of each ride request and
driver, so that Grab drivers are
able to enter the congested hot
spots at required times.
In Malaysia, UEM Edgenta has
implemented the Smart Facilities
Management Solution, which
employs the IoT to provide energy
solutions for smart buildings. The
data collected from smart
buildings managed by UEM
Edgenta goes through their
software, allowing it to generate
energy-saving solutions based on
the information it receives.
Gamuda Berhad also introduced
its Industrialised Building System
(Gamuda IBS), which optimises
efficiency through reduced
construction time and reliance
on manpower. All building
elements are completed in a
factory-controlled environment,
which in turn enhances quality.
The building elements are then
installed on site in a Lego-like
fashion, which reduces wastage
and minimises the number of
workers on site, subsequently
increasing safety levels.
In industry manufacturing,
investors are already making the
move out of developing countries
to developed countries due to
advances in AI and robotics. Some
businesses have returned to the
West where these technologies
and talent reside.
The savings obtained from using
robots or automation instead of
human employees is what attracts
investors. Average labour costs in
manufacturing in 2025, after
adjustments for inflation and other
costs and productivity-boosting
developments, may be 33 per cent
lower in South Korea and 18 to 25
per cent lower in China, Germany,
the US and Japan than they
otherwise would have been.
Closer to home, about 43 per cent
of jobs in Malaysia are already at
risk of being automated by today’s
technology17. For example,
increased investment in
automation by First Solar in Kulim
High Tech Park may result in up to
50 per cent of its human workforce
being affected.
While it is true that the effects of
AI and automation disruption in
countries like Malaysia tend to be
moderated by lower wages and
slower technology adoption, we
should still be cognisant of this
fact: the speed of these
technological advances will also
affect our nation’s ability to
compete with the world and retain
our economic viability.
In short, we cannot be forever dependent on cheap labour as a buffer against the challenges of the future.
Apart from the challenges from AI and robotics, improved mortality rates are now growing an ageing population that continues to work rather than retire. The demand for experienced expert talent is limiting the number of work opportunities for huge numbers of fresh graduates trying to enter the workforce.
On top of this, there is the issue of climate change, a problem that threatens existing jobs in resource-driven industries, and demands for expertise in skills that can address environmental challenges. In order to gain in our strides as a nation, we must continue to anticipate what lies ahead.
