SHOULD YOU EMBRACE AI OR BE SCARED OF IT?

Salon owner Hellen Ward delves into the world of Artificial Intelligence and ponders on just how it might impact our lives

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Mo Gawdat’s is the former Chief Business Officer of Google (X) and his podcasts on the subject of AI as well as his fascinating book, ‘Scary Smart’, paint a picture of just what the world could look like in a very short space of time – utopia or dystopia?

When you listen to Mo, he’s right, it’s quite scary. AI could take over most human jobs in time, with machines rapidly becoming far cleverer than Einstein, making people to all intents and purposes redundant. He paints a picture of our future where people are sitting around campfires in forests living their self-sufficient best lives. Quite how they will pay for it I’m not sure. Quite what careers are left to monetise I don’t know. Mo insists that AI gains its data from our behaviour, and if we immediately realise this and ensure we behave with manners and grace, it has the potential to learn the very best of human characteristics, not the twitterbrigade trolling that it is picking up its ‘humanisation’ from now. Such learnings are shaping up for a very nasty impact on our future.

But will this redundant lifestyle truly make people happy? What with the emergence of 15-minute cities and net-zero targets, there are those who believe a more sinister element is at play when it comes to controlling human behaviour. Are ‘they’ trying to trap us into a WALL-E type existence (Disney’s 2008 futuristic portrayal of a world where people were too morbidly obese to move)? What seemed so far-fetched just a few short years ago now feels all too possible. Trapped in our homes, with drones delivering food and consumables so we don’t have any need to leave? Or desire to move? Was this what lockdowns were preparing us for?

As much as I love the city, I adore the countryside and the beach, so being a prisoner within my neighbourhood could not be any more horrific to me. Travelling to foreign climbs, venturing out of where I usually live, being with people, socialising and shopping, they are all what I plan to do in my retirement – the retirement I choose. No restrictions.

Research suggests all the obvious AI benefits; computer generated analysis, online consultations, personal product recommendations and even the perfect hair or make-up colour prescription, custom blended.

Effect on industry

Looking at how AI might impact us in general is all very well, but what about how it will play out in hairdressing? Research suggests all the obvious benefits; computer generated analysis, online consultations, personal product recommendations and even the perfect hair or make-up colour prescription, custom blended. From Chatbot booking appointments to virtual reality to try out new make-up and hair looks, our industry will be touched by AI undoubtedly.

But when it comes to the service, the practical element, what then?

When I chose to do a hairdressing apprenticeship, I remember some of my older relatives trotting out the same line: ‘People will always need their hair cut! It’s a job for life!” Back then, with the 1970s 3-day week still fresh in people’s minds, fear of redundancy and recession was the key driver. Finding a career that was bullet-proof was the main objective.

So in the 2030s, just which elements of our jobs will AI take over? It’s hard to predict.

In an increasingly robotic and controlled face-less world, human contact, compassion and empathy will have more and more value.

But I can’t really imagine that any robot or drone could ever compare with the soft, healing hands of a top-notch masseuse, or the magic touch of a professional facialist. AI may be able to prescribe, consult, book and recommend accurately and effectively, but is that any substitute for the personal touch? The wisdom and experience of a seasoned professional? The application expertise of a specialist?

Some careers will be entirely obliterated by AI, indisputably. But ours? I think we have a unique niche. And the more the world becomes false and robotic, and the more limited human contact is, hopefully the more in demand we will become.

For those of us who have spent their entire careers championing the industry we love, I don’t need to remind anyone of just what elements of our work matter most to our clients. It’s not just about expert treatment and services, it’s the human, pastoral soft skills that our customers love. And in an increasingly robotic and controlled face-less world, human contact, compassion and empathy will have more and more value. The couch-side, chairside manner has always been a critical element to a therapist’s success and a vital part of what it takes to excel in our sector, and I think it is currency set to soar. We joke that we aren’t just beauty therapists, we are more like mental health therapists in how we empathise, care and share with our customers. Couple that with a skill set that no robot could compete with, and I think we just might be ok.