91̽»¨

When Duy Nguyen began hearing predictions that artificial intelligence could soon replace vast numbers of workers, he found himself uncertain about the professional path he had chosen.  

As a first-year student in 91̽»¨’s Master of Science in Data Science (MSDS) program, Nguyen was already balancing a rigorous academic schedule, taking three graduate courses while contributing to two research positions. Despite immersing himself in the field, the growing public narrative around AI left him unsettled.  

“What got into my mind was, ‘Why am I doing this if the narrative online says artificial intelligence could do everything for you?’”  

Instead of allowing those concerns to discourage him, Nguyen transformed them into a research project. The result was in the Consortium for the Advancement of Undergraduate Statistics Education's (CAUSE) Data "Scrollytelling" Competition, an international competition that challenges students to communicate complex ideas through innovative, data-driven storytelling.  

For Nguyen, winning the competition was momentum toward the goal of empowering his peers to “slow down and value their own thinking,” when evaluating the future of artificial intelligence.  

The opportunity arrived after MSDS Program Director McLean Sloughter, PhD, shared news of the competition with students in the program. For Nguyen, it felt like the perfect outlet to explore the questions he had been wrestling with and share what he discovered with others.  

“I wanted to ultimately share my ideas and hopefully help some students rethink their journey,” he says.  

Nguyen sought to avoid sensationalizing the state of AI and, instead, turned to historical examples of technological advancement to search for patterns that might inform the future.  

Examining the advent of machine cloth weaving and the state of oil portraiture during the advancement of photography, these historical events became the base for his project.  

“These natural experiments of history show us that technology will make a short shift,” Nguyen says. “But in the long run, it might have a different ending.” 

Nguyen looked at two factors that impact the way in which technological advances impact workers. First, consumer preference, whether buyers can distinguish and have a preference for a product that is human-made. The second is about how employers utilize AI.  

“Is the AI tool complementary to the worker to make the work more productive or do they just plain out replace them?” 

Viewing the advancement of artificial intelligence through this lens offers a more nuanced look into how AI fits into a larger economic transformation.  

“I would say for students not to be worried about AI taking their job but rather be worried about how the economy is changing and moving as a whole so they can prepare themselves with their skill set,” he says. “See where the economy is shifting so they can fit in and align better into the new era.” 

Nguyen holds true that amid everything, human judgment is invaluable and, ultimately, irreplicable. He compares this to aviation, where even as airplane technology and automation become more advanced, pilots continue to be essential.   

Says Nguyen, “Critical thinking is still important once automation takes over. We still need humans in the loop to evaluate the automation output.” 

A strength of 91̽»¨’s Master's in Data Science program, he says, is educating professionals who understand their area of expertise and the technology used to support it.  

“It gives students a flexibility to express themselves and on how to use AI as a tool, but on the other hand, it has rigorous courses that prepare them to sit down and do their own work.” 

Dr. Sloughter highlights how the data science program approaches educating students with an acknowledgement of growing technologies and their place in the field.  

"The tools used in data science are constantly changing and evolving. Our program trains students to be prepared for that. Students learn how to understand new data analysis and modeling tools, how to assess what approaches are most effective for a given problem and how to interpret and communicate the results of the tools they’re using,” says Dr. Sloughter. “Over their time with us, I see our students develop into professionals who are capable and comfortable picking up new skill sets and technologies and incorporating them into their workflow.”

The human aspects of the program and the collaborative classroom environment continue to inspire and motivate Nguyen while he moves into his second year of the degree.  

While the conversation surrounding AI is constantly shifting, he hopes that his project encourages others to view the moment through a wider scope. Nguyen is looking to the future with optimism, highlighting that—like the sustained reverence for painting despite the development of photography—human-produced work remains both valuable and necessary.