(WXYZ) — Artificial intelligence is reshaping how people work across industries in metro Detroit — from architecture firms to community training centers to the skilled trades.
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Connor Richardson, an interior and architectural designer with Hamilton Anderson, said AI has become an everyday tool in his work over the past 10 years in the field.
"These days we're seeing it a lot more with the visualization, storyboard and things like that but it's also helping us organize and collaborate," Richardson said.
Richardson said AI is mostly used to help form concepts of spaces, but the technology can go as far as creating 3-D renderings in seconds or sketching floor plans. By inserting a few words into a prompt, Richardson was able to generate a detailed building design in minutes with 7 News Detroit.
He also created an AI-generated sketch based on a simple drawing made by 7 New Detroit Reporter Whitney Burney.
"Technology continues to help the field of architecture evolve and as our capabilities get to be greater and efficiency is better, we're able to come up with more informed design," Richardson said.
The demand for AI skills has grown so quickly that places like the University of Michigan are now teaching it, and community organizations are offering training as well.
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Live 6, which is a community organization on Detroit's west side working to bridge the digital divide, is among those offering AI instruction. Technology Program Manager Donovan Brown spends his days showing small business owners how to automate tasks.
"I think there's going to be a high demand for people to use AI and if you're not using AI you're going to be left behind," Brown said.
"It's not only limited to administrative emails, you can ask chat to brainstorm with you. It's almost like having a second brain or second partner with you to help get you over the hurdle," Brown said.
Lauren Uddyback with Black Tech Saturdays in Detroit said her team has already implemented the daily use of AI.
"We've used them for planning events, project management, ome things you might see soon that are lot more public facing. We're using it in our social media now to respond to people," Uddyback said.
Uddyback said this moment in tech mirrors a pivotal shift in history.
"I say that we're in another Industrial Revolution and I think Detroit is really fertile soil for that next wave of technology. We're seeing a lot with drone technology. We're seeing a lot with places like New Lab and Michigan Central where we are," Uddyback said.
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AI adoption accelerates, concern over job loss has grown alongside it. Recent research by Goldman Sachs finds AI has erased 16,000 net jobs per month over the past year, with Gen Z and entry-level workers feeling the biggest impact. According to Boston Consulting Group, as many as 2.8 million jobs in Michigan alone are expected to be reshaped by AI over the next 5 to 10 years.
Ryan Hundt with the Michigan Works! Association said workforce preparation is a top priority.
"It's a technology that companies across all different industries and shapes and sizes are adopting and so we need to better prepare workers," Hundt said.
Hundt said he is working to re-frame the conversation around AI as one of opportunity rather than threat.
"There are certainly things: relationship building in particular, soft skills, that we see that are in demand here in the workplace. Those are not going away any time soon. We need to be working around and with AI as opposed to pushing back on it," Hundt said.
While AI tools are enhancing many roles, some fields remain areas where human ability will always be necessary like the courtroom, construction sites and the skilled trades.
John Perkins with the Union Carpenters and Millwright Skilled Training Center in Detroit said demand for skilled trade workers is growing, and AI use by project managers
could mean even more work opportunities ahead.
"We're definitely AI proof," Perkins said.
Perkins said his organization views technology as a complement to human work, not a replacement for it.
"When we think about technology we think about it as a tool not a replacement," Perkins said."When you think about the sky scrapers, the bridges, the houses that you eat work and play in, it takes that human touch to make what's on paper a reality and I don't think AI can replace that."
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
