Human resources and technology concept for AI to enhance teamwork.
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The rise of artificial intelligence (AI) is astonishing in both its speed and impact. Investment in AI is expected to reach $100 billion in the U.S. and $200 billion worldwide by next year, according to Goldman Sachs data. Last year, private equity alone invested $2.18 billion in generative AI (GenAI), double the previous year.
But while we often hear about the limitless potential of AI, it’s no surprise that we also pay more attention to the careers, lives, and communities it will disrupt, including those who have traditionally been left behind. need to pay. For example, a recent McKinsey study found that Black Americans are 10% more likely to work in jobs slated for AI automation. Additionally, the same study predicts that AI will destroy 4.5 million jobs for Black workers. This disruption could have a multibillion-dollar impact on Black economic potential and growth. According to McKinsey, if current trends hold, the new wealth created by GenAI alone will widen the racial wealth gap by $43 billion annually.
We have already seen how the rapid adoption of technology can exacerbate inequality and create new divisions. It is enough to look at the birth and spread of computers and the Internet. In 1987, economist Robert Solow famously argued that “the computer age is everywhere except in productivity statistics.” Today, we almost take for granted how much productivity the digital age has brought us. But that digital age has also created a digital divide, exacerbating racial economic disparities. And one of the legacies of our failure to address this digital divide and ensure broadband access for Black and other communities who lack access to resources and opportunities is limited engagement with these tools.
What can we do to prevent a new gap between rich and poor?
As we stand at the beginning of the next revolution in AI and its initial wave of value creation, our urgent challenge is to prevent further gaps. We do this by empowering all people to participate and become leaders in this evolving field, so our economy can reap greater benefits. It starts with the infrastructure that supports enabling AI for everyone, including education on AI tools, access to the internet, and computing power.
One model for this is the work being done by the Student Freedom Initiative (SFI). As a first step, we need to address the existing digital broadband divide. SFI has worked hard to close the digital divide in Black communities, including historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), 82% of which are located in broadband deserts. This is a critical gap that must be filled to provide the next generation of diverse leaders with the resources, education, and technical access they need to master evolving technologies.
We also need to redouble our efforts to provide education on these tools. A combination of critical thinking and technical skills is becoming a prerequisite for effectively interacting with GenAI. Our education system, especially secondary and tertiary institutions, must play a key role in equipping students with these essential skills.
In partnership with Stats Perform, a global leader in AI solutions for the sports industry and a portfolio company of my global investment firm, Vista Equity Partners, SFI launched the “AI in Basketball” course at Morehouse College last year. has started. The course provided hands-on instruction on AI use cases and helped prepare students to become leaders in the field. We also provided internship opportunities for students to apply what they learned in a real-world setting, allowing them to build experience and a competitive resume for a career in AI. We plan to soon expand these courses to other HBCUs, creating entry points into this growing industry.
Another notable example of this is the work being done at internXL, which offers free training, certification and other opportunities in artificial intelligence, data science, and machine learning, including access to over 500 AI training courses . The internXL initiative also connects talented HBCU students with internships with AI experts and employers to gain hands-on experience in the field. And internships are very important. Research shows that an internship with the hiring organization or in the same field is one of the biggest differentiators used when selecting qualified candidates. This initiative will close the access gap and ensure that underrepresented talent can thrive in the fast-growing and high-demand field of AI.
Finally, we also need to ensure widespread access to computing or processing power to run these new tools and their applications. Using the example of smartphones, computing has been made possible because telecommunications organizations have updated their infrastructure to support 4G, 5G, and LTE, all of which are not fully invested in across Black communities. I didn’t. If we want to maximize the potential economic impact of AI, all communities must have access to the infrastructure that supports these tools and technologies. This includes computing power, required energy sources, large language models, and other machine learning and inference tools.
economic burden
We know that the racial wealth gap will cost the U.S. economy between $1 trillion and $1.5 trillion from 2019 to 2028. Imagine what that would mean for the economy if we took steps to prevent AI from becoming the new economic wedge, and instead it became the economic wedge. A rich source of intergenerational wealth. What if communities around the world had reliable access to these tools? As long as they take appropriate steps to ensure that these tools do not imitate or reinforce racial bias, this Fostered innovation and economic growth can close many gaps and create prosperity for all.
In AI’s current trajectory, there are three distinct waves of value capture opportunities. We are already seeing the first wave of value creation benefiting hardware vendors. The second wave will span super-scalers such as Microsoft, Google, Oracle, and other large companies with the ability to provide a wide range of connectivity to computing. The third wave will benefit enterprise software vendors who offer AI and GenAI solution sets in addition to their existing offerings. These three distinct areas should focus capital efforts to impact the long-term growth of AI and GenAI.
The good news is that unlike the digital revolution, we have foresight. As AI evolves and established companies and startups expand their products, develop capabilities, and capture value at each step, we are committed to making the amazing benefits of AI accessible to everyone. You need to put in the effort. If we don’t have that, we won’t be equipped or capable to fully exploit and unleash that potential. At these crossroads, we need to think broadly and act decisively to ensure we build the infrastructure that supports the realization of AI and GenAI.
Robert F. Smith is the founder, chairman, and CEO of Vista Equity Partners. He is chairman of the Student Freedom Initiative (SFI) and Carnegie Hall, founding director and chairman of the Fund II Foundation, and co-chair of the Southern Communities Initiative (SCI). In 2019, Mr. Smith canceled the student loans of approximately 400 Morehouse College graduates and was named one of TIME’s 100 Most Influential People in 2020.
