ai and ml
Whitehall says Work Assistant will help job seekers apply 24 hours a day – but only if employers don’t mind machine-generated applications.
The UK government is introducing AI-powered resume writers to job seekers in the hope that the technology that takes away jobs will also help people find jobs.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer used London Tech Week to announce a three-month trial of the AI Work Assistant, which has a “job center in your pocket” and provides 24-hour support with resume writing, applications, job hunting, career advice and more.
The service is already live online, but the government wants users to keep a few things in mind before handing over their keyboards to large-scale language models. Check whether your employer allows AI-assisted applications, ensure the content generated is accurate, and perhaps most difficult of all, rewrite the content to sound like you.
The government is effectively encouraging job seekers to use AI, but cautioning them not to make it obvious.
The service appears to be the latest step in Whitehall’s growing enthusiasm for AI-powered public services. Earlier this year, the government confirmed it was working with Anthropic to develop a chatbot for jobseekers, and more recently launched GOV.UK Chat, a generative AI assistant built into the GOV.UK app that boldly advertises itself as “the world’s most comprehensive government-built chat tool.”
Whitehall’s latest experiment comes as young workers face the toughest job market in years. Youth unemployment has risen to 16.2%, according to official figures, the highest level in more than a decade, but business groups have repeatedly warned that rising employment costs are making businesses more cautious about hiring.
“No one doubts the huge potential for technology to change lives,” Starmer is expected to say. “But we have to decide who that change is for. This Government’s choice is clear: the technology revolution must work for everyone, not just a privileged few. We will support British businesses to lead the way, drive growth and investment, and transform us into more jobs and stronger communities.”
He added that ministers would use technology to help people get into work, improve skills and tackle inequality, “bringing opportunity to every corner of the country”.
Alongside AI assistants, ministers announced AI and technology training for up to 400,000 students in disadvantaged schools and a new AI bootcamp program for young people at risk of falling out of education, employment and training.
The announcement comes as ministers simultaneously grapple with growing concerns about the impact of AI on the labor market. A recent survey found that almost one in five Brits believes that large-scale job cuts due to AI could cause social unrest, and more than half expect the technology to reduce the number of jobs available.
These concerns aren’t likely to go away anytime soon. The same technology companies that are building AI systems to automate workplace tasks are increasingly touting these tools as a replacement for at least some human tasks, especially the administrative and entry-level roles that traditionally provided a route to employment.
It remains to be seen whether employers will be eager to receive applications made with the same technology they are deploying to screen candidates. The labor market may continue to be an arms race between applicants using AI and recruiters using AI to screen out applicants.
Perhaps somewhere in between, humans are still expected to be employed. ®
