“The less we know about a subject, the less we’re able to measure the extent to which we haven’t mastered it,” points out cognitive neuroscientist and clinical psychologist Albert Moukheiber in his book Votre cerveau vous joue des tours (Your brain plays tricks on you), published in 2020. The author examines the current tendency to oversimplify and overestimate our capacity for understanding.

Complex subjects such as the brain, quantum physics and, more recently, artificial intelligence are often presented in simplified terms. The association, of which Moukheiber is a co-founder, fights against the illusion of knowledge and warns against the Dunning Kruger effect, whereby a person thinks they are competent on a subject when they have no qualifications whatsoever. This phenomenon first came to light at the end of the 1990s, when a bank robber was caught red-handed: he had smeared himself with lemon juice, having been told this would make him invisible to security cameras.

With labour shortages now a reality in Luxembourg, digital skills are increasingly in demand to support the digital and environmental transition. Against this backdrop, the Luxembourg chamber of commerce is highlighting the importance of training in the artificial intelligence sector.

Training, yes--but training intelligently

Aware of the challenges, Carlo Thelen, director general of the chamber of commerce, said: “as well as attracting new talent to set up in Luxembourg, it is also essential to train people who are already working, to help them upgrade their skills”.

However, it is not a question of training for training’s sake, warns Moukheiber. It’s first and foremost a question of training on AI quickly and effectively to meet urgent labour needs, but it also means training staff for totally new jobs, even if this takes more time. This--more time--is the price to pay for understanding the full complexity of AI and exploiting its full potential.

Rapidly assimilating the specific features of AI will enable organisations to stand out from the crowd, improve their competitiveness and attractiveness and thus attract new talent.

This article in French in Paperjam. It has been translated and edited for Delano.