Lis Cooper, 30, lives in Melbourne and recently quit their job as a data analyst at a tech company after becoming disillusioned with the industry and growing concerned that AI would eventually replace them. The following has been edited for brevity and clarity.<\/p>\n
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I was working at a large tech company doing data analytics, which I enjoyed. In a meeting, leaders were sharing their plans for the next couple of years. They told us we\u00a0would be rebuilding our data warehouse to optimize it for AI data analysis.<\/p>\n
I raised my hand and said, “You’re optimizing the data warehouse for AI data analysis. But we are data analysts. How does that fit in with our jobs?”<\/p>\n
They said we would be doing the warehouse build for the next couple of years and that we wouldn’t have to focus on data analysis.<\/p>\n
My role for the last five years had been making graphs, and the company was saying AI would do this \u2014\u00a0that it would spin up these graphs.<\/p>\n
I looked around in dismay at my data-analyst colleagues, who I think fit into two camps: the AI true believers and the Luddites, a word that I say with a very positive connotation, because it’s OK to be skeptical of automation.<\/p>\n
That evening, I decided that I probably should leave the company. Based on what I knew was going on at other companies, I knew mine wasn’t the only one approaching AI this way.<\/p>\n
I had to figure out my finances, because I also had a mortgage I couldn’t pay without my salary. It was about three months between that meeting and my resignation because I had to sell my house.<\/p>\n
My decision to leave wasn’t only related to AI. I’ve lost faith in the industry over the last few years, particularly with people becoming overly reliant on technology and the wealth inequality<\/a> that these companies can exacerbate. I’m also not happy with the environmental impact of data centers<\/a>.<\/p>\n AI was the kicker for me. I thought, “Well, this is all going to end anyway. They’re going to be laying us off. And if I’m laid off, I can’t pay my mortgage immediately, so I may as well sort out the mortgage thing and then figure out the next step a bit earlier.”<\/p>\n I want to be more analog<\/p>\n I knew that if I did this, I likely would not get another tech role because the job market is not what it was when I started about 10 years ago. So that made leaving a really scary decision.<\/p>\n Maybe there’s a tech role out there for me at a nonprofit or at some company that is trying to make the world better, but I didn’t want to stay at that company and try to look for something. I was like, “This needs to end.”<\/p>\n Five years ago, it was so easy to leave a company and find a role. My colleagues and I would have companies messaging us all the time, asking to poach us. It is not like that anymore.<\/p>\n I’m going to be looking for a job at a coffee shop or a restaurant. I want to be more analog. I want to see people face to face, have chats, be in the community, or maybe do hairdressing \u2014 something with my hands. I’m also thinking about teaching and helping the next generation.<\/p>\n There are lots of things I could do. I’m actually kind of struggling with the choices because I have so many possibilities in front of me. It’s kind of terrifying. I feel like I’m 17 again, trying to figure out what I want to do after high school.<\/p>\n I’ve had a lot of people reach out to me saying, “I’ve got this company where we’re trying to do ethical AI.” I have no doubt that there may be job offers around, but I want to make the world better.<\/p>\n