The news: Employers will increasingly rely on AI to enhance productivity, and workers in the "middle ground" may face the greatest potential losses, as suggested by Business Insider's Matt Turner. According to Turner, workers who are mid-ability, mid-level, and mid-career could be disproportionately affected by AI. "Mediocrity will be automated," an unnamed tech executive told him.

What the numbers say: Business leaders do view enhanced workplace productivity as the top advantage of AI, according to Microsoft. The company's 2023 Work Trend Index, appropriately titled "Will AI Fix Work?", found that 31% of business leaders valued AI for increasing employee productivity, the most of any potential benefit. According to a separate Harris survey, 40% of workers worry about ChatGPT replacing their jobs, while 60% believe it will boost their productivity.

The evidence: AI does appear to boost worker productivity, and novice workers benefit over their cohorts with higher skills, according to a recent study from the National Bureau of Economic Research. Introducing an AI-based conversational assistant at a call center boosted worker productivity by almost 14%, on average, for nearly 5,200 customer support agents. The study showed a 35% improvement for low-skilled and inexperienced workers, with little to no impact on experienced workers, suggesting that it may not pay off for higher-skilled workers.

Source: "Generative AI at Work," Erik Brynjolfsson, Danielle Li & Lindsey R. Raymond.

Watch this: Gary Marcus' TED Talk, "The Urgent Risks of Runaway AI – and What to do About Them."

Where to watch: YouTube.

What it's about: The neuroscientist, author, and AI expert warns that truth and reason will suffer if unreliable AI is rolled out at a rapid pace. He highlights the shortcomings of today's AI and calls for a global, nonprofit organization to regulate the technology. Marcus cites a new survey that says over 90% of people agree with carefully managing AI and finishes with a Q&A session with TED's Chris Anderson.

About the speaker: Marcus is an emeritus professor of psychology and neural science at NYU. His latest book, "Rebooting AI: Building Artificial Intelligence We Can Trust," co-authored with Ernest Davis, was chosen by Forbes as one of the "7 Must-Read Books About AI." He also recently testified before a Senate subcommittee to discuss AI regulations alongside OpenAI CEO Altman and IBM Chief of Trust Christina Montgomery.

Quotable: "We need research to build new tools to face the new risks that we are threatened by," Marcus said during the TED Talk. "It's a very big ask, but I'm pretty confident that we can get there because I think we actually have global support for this."

Credit: Gilberto Tadday / TED

Google announced an AI update for the Gmail mobile app that aims to make it easier to find specific emails. The machine learning-powered feature displays "top results" when conducting an inbox search.

More:

• To curate the most relevant emails, the AI tool considers search terms, recent emails, and other factors.
• According to Google, the results are sorted by recency and should be more relevant to better match the user's query.
• The company said the "high-requested feature" will open up to some users on the Gmail app for Android and iOS starting today.
• It will gradually expand to all users over the next few weeks.

Weekly roundup — Other top AI stories you might have missed this week:

• Prominent AI experts, including OpenAI and Google DeepMind executives, signed a brief statement stressing the urgent need to address the "risk of extinction from AI," comparing it to the threats posed by nuclear war and pandemics. In the statement, more than 350 experts stressed that mitigating AI's risks should be a global priority.
• The U.S. and EU said they plan to release a voluntary "code of conduct" for AI soon, which can serve as a temporary measure until permanent regulations are established. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken emphasized the need to adopt the code urgently, inviting "like-minded countries" to participate.
• The National Eating Disorder Association (NEDA) disabled its chatbot after it provided harmful advice. Activist Sharon Maxwell shared a negative experience with the chatbot, which she claimed encouraged her to lose weight and engage in weekly weighings and a daily 500- to 1,000-calorie deficit.
• WPP, an advertising company, partnered with Nvidia to introduce an AI-powered content engine designed for ad campaign creation. WPP's creative teams can utilize the platform to generate and customize digital content exclusively for WPP clients.
• According to a Checkr survey, a majority of American workers are using AI tools like ChatGPT at work as they face growing pressure to incorporate AI into their daily tasks. The survey also reveals that workers feel compelled to learn about AI, with 79% of respondents expressing the need for more knowledge.

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• Microsoft is charging select large customers $100,000 to access early previews of new AI features in its Office 365 apps. The price represents at least a 40% increase compared to its traditional automation productivity software, sources told The Information.
• Nearly half of surveyed U.S. college seniors expressed interest in using AI chatbots for resume and cover letter writing, according to iCIMS' "Class of 2023" report. However, almost 40% of HR professionals surveyed considered AI usage in job applications a dealbreaker.
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