Amazon celebrated the launch of the Alexa Young Innovator Challenge by hosting an interactive day for more than 100 middle school students, featuring conversations and presentations on the future of work from industry leaders, showcasing the top 10 AI jobs of the future.
To mark the launch of the Alexa Young Innovator Challenge, Amazon is hosting our inaugural Future of Jobs Expo this week. The event welcomed more than 100 secondary school students to Amazon's Shoreditch offices in London to experience first-hand the future of AI work, with the aim of inspiring and motivating the next generation of technologists.
Amazon partnered with futurist Dr. Ian Pearson to compile 10 innovative AI and computer science jobs that could be available to young people in the future, from virtual world architects and nursing drone programmers to AI sports coaches and environmental protection agents.
The event is moderated by Alexa Young Innovator Challenge judges and Amazon Future Engineer UK ambassador Lauren Kisser and Youtuber and Computing graduate Tobi Brown, who is also part of The Sidemen, will also be on the judging panel alongside TV presenters and STEM Education Advocacy author, Carol Vorderman MBE; computer scientist and entrepreneur Professor Sue Black; and mathematics and computing prodigy, and founder of Stemettes, Dr. Anne-Marie Imafidon.
“It is a privilege to be in the position I am in because not only was there a lack of role models that I respected when I was growing up, but there was also less overall emphasis and encouragement on wellbeing in education, technology and digital learning. Quarter With (25%) of 18 year olds primarily looking for career advice on YouTube, I know I have a responsibility to share information and help inspire the next generation to consider careers in the tech and digital world. The Alexa Young Innovator Challenge is where today's students learn about their future A great way to see potential in the working world, so I'm excited to be part of the judging panel to help inspire more students to develop their computer science skills," said Tobi Brown.
Amazon will also host virtual classroom chats with schools across the UK, where Amazon leaders and current apprentices will share insights about their education, careers, and discuss the future potential of artificial intelligence with teachers and students. This hands-on experience, along with the opportunity to interact with Amazon technology experts, is the result of a study commissioned by Amazon showing that 82% of middle school teachers believe their students would be more interested in artificial intelligence and computer science if they had the opportunity to speak about these Industry leaders in the field.
The Alexa Young Innovator Challenge is an exciting new educational initiative for middle school students to create Alexa skills for social good in their communities. Secondary schools across the UK can access free AI training and course-related materials to engage students and support the growth of AI learning in UK classrooms. To win, students ages 13+ are being challenged to create a new Alexa skill focused on conversational artificial intelligence for social good, through which they can help address issues ranging from climate change and healthcare to Social issues such as poverty and homelessness.
Learn more about the future of work below:
- Paramedic Drone Programmer
Artificial intelligence experts with medical knowledge will "teach" drones to be vital assistants to rescue teams. These specialists will program the drones so they can navigate difficult environments, fetch medicine from an ambulance or hospital, provide first aid, and connect with doctors when additional guidance is needed to deliver emergency treatment remotely.
This is especially effective in cities with heavy traffic holding back patients or in remote parts of the world where the nearest hospital is far away.
Skills needed: coordination of medical knowledge, problem solving, hardware skills, communication, calm
- Intelligent Assisted Sports Coach
Human sports coaches will use data and AI skills during training and games to drive game strategy. They will measure player movement, predict game outcomes and adjust in real time, and identify patterns and holes in opponent behavior.
SMART parasport coaches will get the most out of your players' performance while reducing the risk of injury - taking the sport to a new level of competition and excitement. In games today, you can already see players wearing a vest under their shirts that tracks everything from how many steps they take to how many passes they make.
Skills in demand: Team sports, coaching, data analytics, augmented reality, leadership, confidence
- AI Voice Coach
As it becomes more common for people to talk to AI, how it responds will become even more important. Humans will play an important role in guiding AI to sound more real. They'll teach speed, accent, and even when it's funny.
Visual avatars of our AI will become more common, requiring more natural facial expressions and body movements to accompany speech.
Skills needed: language, speech therapy, communication, presentation, acting
- Metaverse Architect
As VR worlds continue to expand—VR worlds in which humans can interact—VR world architects will create environments and activities to engage and entertain the VR crowd.
Architects will use AI to create scenes based on direct feedback from VR characters—what they like or dislike, and what they interact with most often—to design and create uniquely immersive and sensory experiences.
Skills needed: Creativity, AR/VR/XR/UI design, programming, systems engineering, gaming, pop culture.
- Zero Carbon Transport Planner
The future of public transportation is likely to feature driverless pods adapted for multiple travelers to navigate cities, minimizing congestion and energy consumption while bringing people on shared journeys to their destinations. Zero-carbon transport planners will use artificial intelligence-enhanced knowledge of geography and the environment to program the pods to create routes based on real-time demand. In addition to traveling more efficiently and sustainably, you always gain space on the go.
Skills needed: engineering, transportation, geography, urban planning, organization.
- Reinforcement Learning Technician
Artificial intelligence and augmented reality will provide children with state-of-the-art teaching assistants that they can use anywhere and at any time, programmed by human teachers to support classroom-based learning.
Through the teaching assistant's observations and data analysis, AI can help human teachers understand how students learn best, and what they like most, which will help tailor instruction to address any areas of improvement for students. If students like the way a certain teacher teaches, AI will be able to help analyze why, allowing students to succeed in other subjects and helping more children reach their full potential.
Skills Required: Teaching, Programming, Patience, Problem Solving, Observation
- Agricultural Artificial Intelligence Engineer
The food of the future will include a range of new products made from synthetic meat, fungi, algae and insects, the next step up from current meat substitutes such as tofu. To grow these foods at scale, farmers will use AI-powered solutions to monitor farms and operate equipment, making everything more efficient. These solutions will predict weather and environmental impacts to help farmers manage more sustainable farming methods, make better use of machinery, and increase the success of tasks such as seeding and weed control.
Skills needed: food agriculture, engineering, environment, culinary and nutrition, biology.
- AI Creative Skills Producer
AI is already being used to compose new music and create art, replicating any style desired, but future AI will focus on exploiting human skills using data to enhance their creative talents.
This will lead to the use of human skill sets to generate original songs, music, art and dances enhanced by AI. Designing tools to do this requires an understanding of what AI music, dance, and creative skills technology lacks today, and a love of all things artistic and musical in order to develop AI that will enhance creative skills in the future.
Skills needed: Music and art, popular culture, imagination, creativity, engineering, communication.
- Community Nursing Technician
Community care specialists—particularly those from older generations or people with disabilities—will use AI to detect and address loneliness in the community. If social engagement patterns decrease or daily activities change, the technology will alert caregivers to visit elderly or vulnerable community members. This will help ensure the individual's optimal quality of life.
Skills needed: empathy, social skills, data analysis, organization, patience, caring.
- Tech fashion designer
Tech fashion designers will combine their understanding and love of fashion with technical know-how to create the next generation of sustainable smart clothing and wearable technology while reinventing the consumer experience.
The use of smart materials will allow garments to respond to physical and environmental conditions, such as extreme heat or cold, reducing the need for layered clothing, seasonal wardrobes and specialist gear. The Metaverse catwalk, augmented reality and AI-based digital fitting rooms will enhance customers' experience, allowing them to discover and "try on" products virtually. This will improve the overall shopping experience and reduce the fashion industry's carbon footprint from design to sale, as people will need to buy fewer things and last longer.
Skills needed: design, fashion, environment, culture, engineering.
The Alexa Young Innovator Challenge reinforces Amazon's commitment to supporting the education and skill development of learners from diverse backgrounds and is part of Amazon Future Engineers - Amazon's comprehensive childhood-to-career program designed to inspire, educate and empower children And young people try computer science and develop coding skills. Since launching in 2019, Amazon Future Engineer has reached over 280,000 students across the UK, and with this latest challenge, it hopes to reach even more.