There is no such thing as an AI-proof career.

Look at recent output from leading edge humanoid robotics projects like 1X/Neo, Figure 03, Skild AI. Also see open published work like MimicDroid, HDMI, GenMimic, Humanoid-Union Dataset, RoboMirror, Being-H0

Figure 03:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-31-KBBuXM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUTzuhkDG3w

1X Neo:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lS_z60kjVEk

Skild AI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRmjBdKKLsc (Learning by Watching Human Videos)

Mimic

https://youtu.be/_LkBFL5m1WU?si=Qvgb7vkpG_KCAJdN

There is a ton of very useful recent progress with imitation learning and related datasets. There is also some work on learning from large scale video like Youtube.

We are months away from the ChatGPT moment in humanoid robotics where a project launch or demo makes people finally realize that they are general purpose.

The only way we could have AI proof careers is if humanoid robotics were to completely stop progressing. Since it's been advancing very rapidly, that makes no sense.

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theteapot an hour ago | parent | next [-]

I dunno. I trained as a software engineer, pivoted to civil laborer. I just can't see a robot doing 90% of the stuff I do anytime soon. Same goes for plumber, electrician, ... even most mobile plant operations. As a supplement around the edges, sure. But replace? Not in the near term. And that's not even considering the safety certification moats around skilled labor roles.

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CharlieDigital an hour ago | parent [-]

I'm think event photography is another.

It's one thing to use AI to touch up photos, but in the end, you probably still want photos that match your memories and good photography still has an element of taste and creativity.

	▲	wolvoleo 26 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		Yeah I think with all the AI slop around, people are going to value 'real' a lot more.

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vhantz an hour ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Pfew, if the biggest threat is from humanoid, then there is nothing to worry about

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rogerrogerr an hour ago | parent | prev [-]

AI-proof is probably the wrong way to look at it, but there is substantial advantage in being in one of the _last_ to be automated industries. Social safety nets and such are probably set up by the time the robots come for the last jobs.

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bilbo0s an hour ago | parent | next [-]

>Social safety nets and such are probably set up by the time the robots come for the last jobs.

What makes you think "Social safety nets" will be the solution the élites land on?

If we were to wargame out different scenarios, we'd likely find there are a lot of potential solutions to the problem of large masses of people who are not useful to the cause of productivity in your society.

Giving non-élites a social safety net is actually one of the most resource intensive solutions. Not saying our oligarchs would not choose that solution. Just pointing out that it would severely impact their bottom lines. More than almost any other solution in fact.

	▲	porknubbins 40 minutes ago \| parent \| next [-]
		If elites do not provide a social safety net why would the masses respect their elite status and resource endowments anyway? Unless you are suggesting billionaires build private armies in some sort of neo feudalism, there are no elites who are not dependant on the existing social structure.
	▲	yabutlivnWoods an hour ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		On the upside they'll all generationally churn out of life, acting as a forcing function on future decisions. Time isn't linear. No guarantees we march right along handing batons to the next age group. Which generation will future elites making the choices come from? Millennials and GenZ (despite a blip towards Trump in 2024, they blipped hard away from him as his policies of 2025 hit them hardest) are trending progressive as they age. And Millennials and GenZ outnumber a GenX population that is the only cohort to not sour on Trump. GenX influence will rapidly shrink as Boomers churn out. No linear time. No single clock all living things tick to. Meaning the population composition is not guaranteed to exist such that the old ways are the future. No guarantee 50 year middle managers waiting patiently end up elites in control. They might be too copy paste and conservative. https://fortune.com/2025/08/07/gen-x-ceos-decreasing-baby-bo...

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bitwize an hour ago | parent | prev [-]

The Canadian social safety net has big enough holes that rather than incur the costs as a first resort, the Canadian government has taken to passing out "are you aware of your options regarding MAID?" pamphlets to decidedly non-terminal patients.

There's only one way to AI-proof yourself: become enormously rich and join the Davos class.