I consulted ChatGPT and Gemini to predict my job in 5 years. Here's their forecast.

In the coming five years, artificial intelligence is expected to reshape the nature of work. Consulting giant EY has already equipped its staff with an AI platform designed to forecast these changes. Curious, I explored whether AI tools like ChatGPT and Gemini could offer similar insights for my role as a journalist.

EYs AI Initiative

An EY executive shared that the firm recently rolled out an AI tool as part of an internal program called AI Now 2.0. Employees respond to prompts about their job responsibilities and outputs, which are then analyzed by EYQ, the companys internal AI system, to project potential changes in their roles due to AI adoption. The aim is to identify skills and knowledge that will be essential in the future.

While AI affects all industries, consulting firms face unique pressures. Consultants advise other businesses, so they must implement AI effectively in-house, reconsidering pricing models, talent structures, and service offerings. Newsrooms, similarly, confront both the risks and opportunities AI presents.

Exploring AIs Impact on Journalism

Inspired by EY, I tested AI predictions for my own job. I prompted both ChatGPT and Gemini to act as organizational strategists, providing expert analysis rather than casual advice. I identified myself as a Business Insider reporter covering the Big Four firms and workplace culture, listing core responsibilities, and requested a future role assessment focusing on the most significant changes.

ChatGPT Analysis

ChatGPT projected that AI will increasingly handle tasks like drafting, research, and context generation for stories. Tools will emerge to support publishing in real time, including smart templates and immediate access to past coverage. The unique value of reporters, it said, will lie in accessing confidential insights, interpreting organizational dynamics, and providing nuanced analysis that AI cannot replicate.

ChatGPT also recommended developing AI fluency, learning to evaluate AI outputs critically, and applying analytics to anticipate stories. Regarding ethics, the main takeaway was to remain cautious with AI outputs. Overall, it emphasized that evolving alongside AI tools would secure the reporters role, which thrives on judgment, context, and access.

Gemini Analysis

Gemini delivered a more comprehensive response, producing a 3,400-word strategy document titled "The Algorithmic Nexus: A Future Role Analysis for the Business Insider Big Four Reporter in the Era of Generative AI". It highlighted that AI might compromise reporters ability to obtain exclusive information due to corporate surveillance technologies. Journalists will need to upgrade secure sourcing skills.

Gemini also confirmed that AI will assist research and writing, shifting focus from drafting to verification. It suggested advanced capabilities like RAG literacy for algorithmic research and using verification tools such as Reality Defender. Unlike ChatGPT, Gemini stressed that job security is not guaranteed by merely using AI; reporters must evolve into ethical overseers and veracity gatekeepers.

Reflection

Simon Brown, EYs global learning leader, explained that their AI tool illustrates where AI can genuinely assist employees. My experiment was informal and cannot be directly compared to EYs structured program, yet it offered valuable insight. AI can enhance efficiency and verification, and traditional journalism skills like source-building are adapting alongside these technologies. Most importantly, the exercise reinforced the importance of proactively exploring AIs potential impact.

Author's Analysis: AI's Emerging Role in Journalism

The recent experiments with AI tools like ChatGPT and Gemini reveal a clear trajectory for journalism over the next five years. Both platforms suggest that AI will increasingly handle routine tasks such as drafting, research, and content structuring, allowing journalists to focus on higher-order responsibilities like interpretation, context, and verification.

ChatGPT emphasizes the continued value of judgment and access, recommending AI fluency and critical evaluation skills for reporters. Gemini goes further, highlighting the growing need for secure sourcing and ethical oversight as corporate surveillance and algorithmic research tools become more prevalent. Job security, Gemini suggests, will depend not merely on using AI but on integrating it responsibly into the workflow.

The comparison to EY's structured internal AI program underscores the potential for AI to forecast role changes systematically. While my experiment was informal, it demonstrates that journalism is entering an era where efficiency, verification, and ethical judgment must evolve alongside technological adoption. Proactive exploration of AI’s capabilities is no longer optional; it is central to maintaining relevance and authority in the newsroom.

Sources:

• I asked ChatGPT and Gemini to tell me what my job will look like in 5 years. Here's what they told me.