The week's developments on automation & the workplace, explained | 20.11.23

If you’re enjoying this briefing, sign up here — and share it with a friend. Reading time: ~5 minutes

Once upon a time, parents advised their kids to pursue medicine, law, or banking if they wanted a shortcut to financial success. Now, the younger generation is all about the AI gold rush, where $800k+ salaries are the norm. But are these salaries sustainable for companies?

New data shows women have experienced faster growth in weekly pay compared to men in 2023, but the UK's gender pay gap persists. Over 78% of full-time job roles have a gender pay gap in favour of men.

Elsewhere, PwC is planning to upskill its 75,000-person workforce in AI using its GenAI platform, ChatPwC. Despite recently announcing job cuts, the company emphasised that it sees AI as a tool to augment human work, not replace it.

—Charlie & the Research & Intelligence team

P.S. After an incredible CogX Festival 2023, we're gearing up for another year of cutting-edge innovation, game-changing breakthroughs, and endless inspiration. Don't miss out – grab your super early bird tickets now and secure your spot at CogX Festival 2024 today!

CogX Must Reads

Top Stories

AI recruitment surge drives salaries to new heights 

Ever since ChatGPT's launch, the corporate world has raced to hire top AI talent. Freshly minted PhD graduates in this field are now commanding salaries of up to $400k right out of uni, while high-ranking executives are raking in well over $1 million. (Sifted)

Over two-thirds of UK jobs still pay men more than women

Women saw their weekly pay increase at a quicker pace than men in the 12 months leading to August 2023, but the gender pay gap has not narrowed. 78% of all full-time job roles in the UK pay men more than women, with nearly a third of those jobs paying women 10% less per hour. (ONS)

🚀CogX 2024 Super Early Bird Tickets

Don't miss your chance to secure your spot at the CogX Festival 2024! A limited number of super early bird tickets are now up for grabs at a 75% discount.

Future of the Office

Flexibility isn't just a perk – it's profitable

Employers offering fully remote or flexible office attendance work models saw their sales soar by 21% from 2020 to 2022, a new study shows. Companies that embrace this work structure can see higher employee retention, more engagement, and more diversity.  (Bloomberg)

The over-employed workers juggling remote jobs

Professionals are stealthily mastering the art of working multiple remote jobs for extra cash, triggering some tricky legal and ethical challenges for employers. Those who go for the secret second job are still in the minority, likely comprising less than 1% of the white-collar workforce. (Business Insider)

AI & Automation

Is PwC ahead of the AI curve?

PwC will train its entire 75,000-strong workforce in AI, leveraging its in-house GenAI platform, ChatPwC. Employees will be trained on AI ethics, responsible technology use, and effective prompting of AI tools.  (HR Grapevine)

AI learning boom: online platforms witness record enrollments

AI's takeover is sparking a learning boom among professionals eager to upskill. Platforms like Coursera and Codecademy have seen record-level enrolments, with courses like "Generative AI for Everyone" drawing over 40,000 eager learners. (Worklife News)

Productivity Boosters

🧑‍💻️ BeeDone converts everyday routines into an engaging, game-like productivity experience. Users can centralises task, routines and habits in a way that makes them manageable and fun to complete.

📜 Workist is an AI-driven software that automates business document processing, featuring automatic data extraction, invoice and purchase order management.

📝 AI Checklist Generator tool enables users to create tailored checklist templates for various processes based on their chosen industry.

In case you missed it

This CNBC news special explores the changing face of remote work in corporate America, from widespread acceptance during the pandemic to growing scepticism:

✍️ Enjoying this newsletter?  Subscribe to our free weekly briefings on Preparing for AI, Cinema & AI, The Race to Net Zero, AI & DeepTech and The Future of Work.

You can relive CogX Festival 2023 on our YouTube Channel now. And make sure you join us in person next year - get your super early bird tickets for Festival 2024 now!

Disclaimer: This content is for informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute financial, investment, legal or tax advice.