According to findings published by the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, digital technologies have become an integral part of everyday work: around 30 per cent of employees already use AI tools, particularly AI chatbots powered by large language models (LLMs).

Alumni of Kauno kolegija Higher Education Institution shared their insights on how artificial intelligence is transforming the labour market and the work of specialists across different fields at the forum FutureConnect: alumni, AI and career, held as part of the Internship and Career Days programme.

Social work: algorithms will not replace empathy, but they can help remove barriers

During her presentation, Director of the Jonava District Social Services Centre and expert on refugee integration in Lithuania, Dr Valentina Demidenko, emphasised that social work is fundamentally based on human-to-human interaction, and therefore no technology can replace it entirely.

‘Social work is not just about providing help; it is also about building a relationship. Artificial intelligence has no empathy and cannot carry out ethical assessments, particularly in such sensitive areas as working with traumatised individuals, people with disabilities, older people or children. There is no algorithm that can determine, based solely on external indicators accessible to artificial intelligence, whether a client is uncooperative due to hostility or psychological trauma. For these reasons, artificial intelligence will not replace social workers,’ the Kauno kolegija alumna explained.

However, according to Dr V. Demidenko, artificial intelligence tools can become a valuable assistant in addressing modern geopolitical challenges. She highlighted that social workers today operate in a new reality and increasingly within an international context.

‘The further we move forward, the more we are dealing with migrants, including forced migrants. In this field, language barriers present major challenges, so artificial intelligence tools such as translation software and alternative communication solutions help social workers overcome these difficulties,’ Dr V. Demidenko said, discussing the practical use of artificial intelligence in social work.

Artificial intelligence has its limits

Domantas Šimkus, director of the company ‘Alytaus butų ūkis’ and a public figure, noted that artificial intelligence tools are genuinely helpful in his managerial work. Nevertheless, due to their limitations, he believes they will not replace humans.

‘Artificial intelligence can learn contexts, but humans can simply sense a problem – such as the smell of burning wires or other faults. While artificial intelligence may report an error through a building management system, for example that the required temperature has not been reached, human intuition remains irreplaceable,’ D. Šimkus explained.

He also referred to a study conducted by Yale University, which found no major changes in the labour market since the introduction of artificial intelligence tools: ‘Artificial intelligence has not eliminated jobs on a large scale, but it is changing the nature of work itself. Those who know how to use technology become more capable, while those who are lazy risk becoming even lazier.’

R. Klevickienė: when a patient’s condition worsens, there is no time to consult artificial intelligence

Rasa Klevickienė, senior nurse administrator of the Resuscitation and Intensive Care Unit at the Hospital of Lithuanian University of Health Sciences Kauno klinikos and a nursing specialist at the Nursing Coordination Service, stressed that the nature of her work requires immediate decision-making and the ability to assess multiple factors simultaneously, making full reliance on artificial intelligence impossible.

‘In intensive care, when a patient’s condition suddenly deteriorates, there is no time to ask artificial intelligence what to do. That said, technologies are already fundamentally transforming other areas. For example, in radiology, artificial intelligence is being trained to identify changes in brain tomography scans, while in endoscopy it is used to analyse images in real time,’ R. Klevickienė explained.

According to the Kauno kolegija alumna, although artificial intelligence tools can ease nurses’ workloads and reduce the time required for certain tasks, this raises concerns about whether patients will feel comfortable if healthcare professionals spend less time with them.

‘I find it difficult to imagine whether patients would willingly entrust artificial intelligence with decisions when their health or life is at stake,’ she said.

Without artificial intelligence, the workload would be overwhelming

Donatas Puodžiukynas, compliance manager at the FinTech company LamaTechnology Group and an expert in process and operations management, is convinced that artificial intelligence has become an essential tool without which modern business management would be unimaginable.

‘I switch on my computer and, at the same time, all my artificial intelligence tools. Without them, my workload would be overwhelming. Tasks that used to take me two to three hours – such as taking minutes of three-hour board meetings or preparing and signing documents – can now be completed in just 25 minutes with the help of artificial intelligence. In the financial sector, where regulations change daily and document flows run into thousands of pages, work would be impossible without these tools,’ D. Puodžiukynas explained.

At the same time, he stressed the importance of data security when working with artificial intelligence solutions.

‘Confidentiality is critical in the financial sector, so we use tools that operate through secure interfaces. Employees analyse situations without sharing real or personal data; only generalised information is provided. This allows us to benefit from artificial intelligence while remaining compliant with data protection requirements,’ D. Puodžiukynas said.

The future belongs to those who keep learning

Mindaugas Šatkus, quality manager at one of Lithuania’s largest furniture manufacturing companies, ‘Freda’, and founder of ‘Šešios Trim’, shared that in industry, artificial intelligence is increasingly becoming an assistant capable of identifying non-conforming products and managing vast production volumes.

‘In furniture manufacturing, artificial intelligence can help distinguish left from right, top from bottom. However, every artificial intelligence system still requires a human working alongside it. In the past there were carpenters; today there are machine operators. In the future, there will still be a person responsible for overseeing the process – without that person and a clearly defined task, artificial intelligence will simply be switched off,’ the Kauno kolegija alumnus emphasised.

M. Šatkus encouraged those concerned about technology replacing human labour to continue learning, improving their skills and staying curious about innovation.

‘If you are an idea generator or a visionary, artificial intelligence will not take your job,’ he concluded.