Will AI Replace Data Analyst Jobs?
Open AI Releases Code Interpreter Chat Plugin
Open AI has released a chat GPT plugin called Code Interpreter. This tool can be given any data set, and you can ask it to draw some visuals for generating per-country insights. It will generate all kinds of bar charts and different visuals that can generate the required insights. You can also give it a music data set and ask it to generate clusters for the customers in that music industry. The cluster should be such that they are attracted to the business, and it will write a Python code that uses K-means algorithm to generate the required clusters.
Will AI Replace Data Analyst Jobs?
The burning question nowadays is, will AI replace data analyst jobs? Letβs put an end to this question. The answer is, yes and no. Yes, if you are a data analyst 1.0. No, if you are a data analyst 2.0. Let me explain the difference between 1.0 and 2.0.
Data Analyst 1.0 vs. Data Analyst 2.0
Data analyst 1.0 is a person who works on static requirements. They download a bunch of CSS files, then do some data transformation and cleaning. They are very much task oriented. They are given some tasks, and their goal is to use a bunch of tools to finish those tasks. They run a bunch of SQL queries or write some Python code to accomplish a given task. They donβt take interest in understanding the business, acquiring domain knowledge, or looking at the bigger picture. They also work behind the screen and donβt talk much to the business stakeholders. Such people are going to be replaced by AI because tools like Code Interpreter can do exactly what they are doing today. A business user can now go to Code Interpreter, upload their data, and ask this tool the same question that they were asking to the data analyst 1.0. So, their jobs are going to go away.
Even if you are a data analyst 1.0, this is not the end of the road. You can upgrade yourself into data analyst 2.0 and make yourself indispensable. Data analyst 2.0 is the person who has a strong focus on the business outcome. They take a deep interest in enhancing their domain understanding. Letβs say youβre a data analyst working for Oyo Rooms, which is a hotelβs company. Youβre not interested in building a bunch of dashboards; youβre actually curious about knowing what is going on in the hotel industry. You do a lot of reading and try to acquire that business knowledge. They also use the internet as their second brain. For example, if they come across some complex SQL query that they want to optimize, they will use tools such as chat GPT to optimize the query. By doing that, they are becoming very productive and time efficient. When chat GPT gives the answer, they will also try to understand the answer, so they are enhancing their own knowledge at the same time. They can use chat GPT for a variety of purposes, such as writing Python code, debugging a particular SQL query, or figuring out a DAX formula for a given situation. They also use tools such as Bard to communicate effectively with their managers, colleagues, and so on. Effective communication is the key ingredient for your success in the data industry. Therefore, if you can use some tools to effectively communicate your ideas, why not? It will save you some time and also make you very efficient in terms of communication. They also have a knack for communicating complex or technical things to non-technical folks. They can also do all the things that data analyst 1.0 can do. These people have a problem-solver mindset, so they are not attached to a specific tool or technology. They look at the problem and, for solving the problem, whatever tool they need to learn, they will. They will use the internet, chat GPT, and AI tools to learn these tools fast, and they are mainly focused on the problem, whereas data analyst 1.0 is more focused on the tools that solve those problems.
AI cannot replace data analyst 2.0 because, in order to do that, they will have to replicate the whole human cognition, and the current state of AI is very far.
