What if I told you that nearly 85 percent of jobs that will exist in 2030 haven’t even been invented yet? Impossible, right? Well, not at all, according to a last year’s report by Dell Technologies and Institute for the Future (IFTF).
If their conclusions are anything to go by, we’re going to need to find answers to a great number of difficult questions really fast.
And the most important of these has to be “What are going to be the coolest jobs that don't exist yet?” Well, I picked these four. What do you think?
1. Commercial Space Pilot
Since being a space cowboy isn’t a possibility yet, this one had to top my list. Sure, engineering is cool and all but nothing compares to actually steering the damn thing.
With SpaceX advancing space travel faster than we could imagine a decade ago, it won’t be long before we’re going to see commercial space flights on a daily basis.
Certain situations will still require human pilots.
And yes, much of these jobs will probably remain automated. When you take Falcon Heavy, for instance, it’s hard to imagine us going back to manned spacecrafts we dreamed up decades ago.
Still, there are limits to AI that aren’t going away anytime soon. Which means that certain situations will still require human pilots. Especially where lives of human passengers are involved. After all, good judgement in unexpected situations is something we won’t be able to expect from AI anytime soon.
2. AI Lawyer
As people increasingly interact with AI services, we’re only beginning to fathom the world of implications for what happens when things go wrong.
For instance, some time ago a self-driving Uber killed a woman in Arizona. Who was at fault there? Was it the company that made the car? Or the owner of the vehicle? Ultimately it could even be considered a suicide. The answer is, we don’t know yet. Being a judge will be very interesting.
In many ways, the world of Isaac Asimov’s I, Robot is already here. We’re going to need an army of AI lawyers to help us make sense of it.
3. 3D Food Printer Engineer
Remember that lab-grown burger everyone was buzzing about two years ago? If yes, you probably know it was crazy expensive back then. Well, last year its price dropped from $325,000 to $11.36. But that’s not all!
Know this: the lab-grown burger is only the tip of the enormous iceberg called 3d printed food. And 3d printed food is going to change what we eat, big time.
Because if not, we’re pretty much done for. The global population is set to reach 9 billion by 2050 — at which point agricultural systems will be unable to supply food for everyone.
3d printed food is going to change what we eat, big time.
As far as anyone knows, the technology is already there. We can already print all kinds of processed food, with cakes and candy being the easiest of them all. But there are many others we still cannot do. And we’re still looking for the right ways to use this technology.
We need 3D food printer engineers to help us figure out a way to feed this enormous mass of people. You could say they’re the superstar chefs of tomorrow. What? You don’t think chefs are cool? Not even Gordon Ramsay? Get out of here!
Oh and there’s an enormous amount of money to be earned there too!
4. Augmented Reality Architect
Do you know that nifty IKEA app for your phone that lets you see IKEA furniture as if it was already in your room (assembled)? Pretty cool, right?
This is what they call augmented reality. It’s like reality, but better.
Now try to think bigger. What if it wasn’t just a clunky app in your phone. What if everyone was wearing glasses or contact lenses that would allow them to see IKEA furniture everywhere they go. And what if it wasn’t just IKEA furniture.
Imagine you could design what people see when they look at the world.
This is what the world’s going to be like pretty soon, it’s already coming. What’s it going to look like can very well be up to you.
Imagine you could design what people see when they look at the world. Everything from the navigation arrow that shows you directions to your destination, through to psychedelic visions in the sky.
Now, that’s what I call cool!
Excited about these promising future jobs? As the world continues to evolve, it's key to ensure your resume is ahead of its time. Journey with us through our eclectic collection of resume samples and get a head-start on preparing for the jobs of tomorrow.
You still have enough time to change careers and do something more future-proof. Check out these 10 good reasons to change careers in your 20s.
- Editor in Chief
Martin Poduska is a resume expert and career advice writer at Kickresume. He leads Kickresume’s team of writers and is the main person responsible for upholding the standards of expertise and quality on the blog. In addition to having written nearly 100 in-depth, painstakingly researched resume advice articles, as chief editor he has also edited and revised every single article on this blog. Tens of thousands of job seekers read Martin’s resume advice every month. Martin holds a degree in English from the University of St Andrews and a degree in Comparative Literature from the University of Amsterdam.
