Voxxed Days Thessaloniki 2023 - 300: The Battle of Thermopylae or Generative AI vs Developers

Speakers : Nafsika Papavasileio & Calvin Cassar In the presentation, we will be taking a look at the impact that Generative AI (with tools such as ChatGPT and others) has had on the IT development workplace - we will initially compare this to the battle of the 300 in Thermopylae, which was a pivotal moment in the Ancient Greek's fight against the Persians, and one which had a lasting impact through its outcome. Our developers, the 300, are facing the prospect of an endless wave of assailants, who run the risk of taking their spot in the sun. In the presentation we will be looking at setting up a practical task, and pitting an experienced pool of developers in the audience, against an HR practitioner without prior experience in development, but using ChatGPT. The practical task will then serve as the basis for the thinking points in the presentation, where we will lay out the opportunities offered by Generative AI (it might not be a war after all), the risks and the potential pitfalls. The discussion will revolve around the idea that at different points in history, human abilities have been overtaken by tools (cars for mobility, equipment for lifting) and that AI overtaking human intellect is not an end of a road. Instead, developers and employees should focus on developing the skills that are required in the future, including the ability to extract meaning out of data, the ability to ask the right questions, and the skills to blend one's own work with the resources offered through technology.