The public consultation period for 123 occupational standards has concluded in China. Notably, these standards include several national benchmarks for new AI-related professions. Over the past five years, China has unveiled 72 new occupations, with more than 20 directly linked to AI. Each new profession can drive job creation for hundreds of thousands of people and boost incomes. Looking ahead to the next five years, how can we seize the new employment opportunities created by AI?
Customer service is at the forefront of the professions most affected by AI. As the sector with the earliest digital transformation and the widest application of human-machine collaboration, it was once a prime testing ground for automation. Now, driven by emerging AI-related occupations, the sector is finding a new path to transformation.
Previously, Yu Chen, a customer service representative at JD.com, used to be worried about being replaced by increasingly capable intelligent customer service systems. But with company support and nearly a decade of professional experience, he has successfully transitioned into an AI trainer.
“I wasn’t swept away by the AI wave. Instead, I used its momentum to find a new career identity in human-machine collaboration,” Yu said. His job is to spot flaws in AI responses, diagnose the issue and update the content. He also configures intelligent agents and performs maintenance and optimization to improve the system’s problem-solving capabilities.
The government is providing significant policy support to harness AI. For instance, in April, an action plan was issued for stabilizing jobs, expanding capacity, and improving quality.
“The document encourages enterprises to conduct transition and retraining programs when adopting AI, helping workers remain employed wherever possible. This provides direction for companies and reassurance for workers,” said Liang Zheng, a professor at Tsinghua University’s School of Public Policy and Management.
“AI’s impact on employment is multifaceted. It replaces some traditional jobs, creating structural transition pressure in the short term, but it also generates massive new employment opportunities by spawning emerging industries, innovative business models, and new commercial paradigms,” said Bao Chunlei, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Labor and Social Security.
A vast industrial chain has formed around AI technology itself. Bao said from basic computing infrastructure and data services to algorithmic development and model training at the technical layer, to industry solutions at the application layer, and safety assessments and ethical reviews at the governance layer, every link continuously generates new high-value positions, injecting fresh vitality into the job market.
Wu Jianhua from Beijing Tianyang Rongxin Technology Co., Ltd. has experienced this firsthand. Previously working in algorithms, she realized that without high-quality data as “nourishment,” algorithm training often underperforms. After “AI data annotator” was added to the national occupational classification directory, she switched careers unhesitatingly, becoming an AI data annotator to keep pace with frontier technology and broaden her career path.
As AI deeply integrates with manufacturing, cultural tourism, healthcare, transportation and other sectors, the demand for “AI + industry” hybrid positions will surge, and employment creation will continue to amplify. The World Economic Forum’s latest report projects that while by 2030, AI will displace approximately 92 million jobs globally, and it will also create 170 million new positions, yielding a net increase of 78 million jobs.
“The landscape of new AI professions will keep expanding. On the one hand, it will continue focusing on application implementation in response to industrial transformation. On the other hand, it will continually refine and deepen, spawning more specialized new job types and gradually building a modern occupational ecosystem with ‘clear main branches and flourishing leaves,'” Liang remarked.
Pan Zhiming, principal of Beijing Smart Future Vocational Skills Training School said AI is not replacing jobs; it is structurally reshaping the employment landscape. For job seekers, upgrading skills and building cross-disciplinary capabilities is therefore especially important.