Everyday Workers Reveal AI's Practical Benefits, Not Just Threats

The hallways of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) convention in Cleveland, Ohio, buzzed with conversations, but not as I had anticipated. For the initial two days, a pervasive sentiment echoed among my colleagues: “we must protect ourselves.” Session after session reinforced a consensus that artificial intelligence was an imminent danger, a threat poised to replace us. This narrative of fear dominated the discourse.

Yet, a single breakfast conversation at Betts, my hotel’s restaurant, offered a profoundly different perspective on the unfolding AI revolution. As my waiter, Kevin Knestrick, 49, presented the bill, I tentatively asked if he used AI, half-expecting a dismissive shrug or an impassioned anti-AI tirade, given the convention’s anxious atmosphere.

“Not really,” he replied cautiously, then paused. “Actually,” he continued, “I used it for the first time when we changed the menu. I took a picture, uploaded it to ChatGPT, and asked it to copy the text and prepare a message for a colleague. It saved me so much time.” This initial, surprisingly effective encounter transformed him from a non-user into a curious convert. “Now I’m much more open to any problem I have. I’m just going to ask it now,” he shared, even wondering if AI could empower “the little guy” in investing, a sentiment born from his regret over missing the Bitcoin boom.

As Kevin relaxed, he introduced me to two younger colleagues, Jamie Sargent, 31, and Dawud Hamzah, 37, noting, “You should talk to these guys. They use it a lot more.” He was right. For Hamzah and Sargent, ChatGPT was not a distant threat but an integral part of their daily lives.

Dawud Hamzah, a bartender at Betts and founder of a youth empowerment association, H.Y.P.E. (Helping You Produce Excellence), described ChatGPT as having effectively replaced Google for him. He leverages it to construct “solid, well-structured PowerPoint presentations” for his motivational speaking engagements. Beyond his professional life, it acts as his personal travel planner, health advisor, and coach. For his partner’s birthday, he tasked the chatbot with creating a “phenomenal itinerary” for a relaxing, vegan-friendly trip. When grappling with back pain, he turned to it for “specific home workouts and mobility exercises to relieve pressure from a degenerating disc,” finding the suggestions genuinely effective.

Jamie Sargent, a former special education teacher, has been using ChatGPT since its late 2022 launch. He initially adopted it to generate baseline lesson plans, liberating hours he could then dedicate to tailoring content for individual student needs. “I saved about an hour’s worth of time writing a lesson plan,” he explained, dismissing the notion of it being “cheating.” He argued that teachers already invest extensive personal time in work, making any efficiency gain invaluable. Like Hamzah, Sargent is an enthusiastic travel planner, using ChatGPT to meticulously map out complex international journeys, including a multi-city Italian tour complete with train routes, restaurant recommendations, and cost estimates.

Both Hamzah and Sargent share a pragmatic view of AI’s future. They acknowledge the inevitability of job displacement but emphasize individual responsibility to adapt. “If you don’t learn, develop, and adjust, you’ll fail, because it’s not going to stop,” Hamzah asserted. Sargent echoed this, stressing the importance of focusing on inherently human attributes. “I’m part of the experience, whereas AI is not part of that experience,” he noted, urging individuals to find ways to differentiate themselves and maintain their value.

Their manager, Curtis Helser, 56, also found his way to ChatGPT through his wife about a year prior. He employs it to refine and professionalize work emails, making them more concise. Helser views AI not with fear, but as a neutral tool, akin to a car, capable of good or ill depending on its user. He remains unconcerned about his own job security, humorously stating, “You have to be in the building, kissing babies, shaking hands, that kind of stuff.”

The contrast between the hotel staff’s experiences and the prevailing sentiment at the journalism convention was striking. In the restaurant, AI was not a terrifying adversary but a practical, albeit imperfect, assistant. The younger employees embraced it fully, while the older generation, initially more cautious, gradually integrated it into their lives. They perceived the current panic as a familiar narrative, reminiscent of the anxieties that accompanied the advent of the personal computer. Perhaps those whose professions revolve around creating and controlling information view AI as an existential threat, while those serving people see it simply as another means to accomplish tasks. The true AI revolution, I realized, was not unfolding in sensational headlines or panicked conference halls, but quietly, in everyday conversations, addressing one practical problem at a time.