Artificial intelligence tools are reshaping the professional landscape at an unprecedented pace, experts highlighted during the first edition of the American Innovation Forum in Jerusalem, which brought together dozens of young professionals for a discussion that centered around the theme of “Level Up: Career Growth in the Age of AI.”
“Its important to understand how to use them, but also to know that with AI, you can build applications faster, have new ideas faster, but you need still to be the human behind it, have the human remain behind the wheel… don’t give AI the control to do everything,” explained Mohammad Kabajah, senior software and AI infrastructure architect at Amazon Web Services (AWS).
Kabajah was one of the three speakers at the first edition of the Jerusalem Young Professionals (JYP) Forum, Made in Jerusalem, and Startup Grind in Jerusalem, alongside Miriam Haart, CEO of ActionAI, and Gideon Rosenberg, vice president and head of HR at NVIDIA Israel.
“I think that an important part in the high-tech industry is to fail, and with AI, we have the ability to fail faster, move on, and find the actual thing that will eventually work out,” Kabajah said.
Haart agreed with this idea, noting that “nothing is future-proof” when asked which careers young professionals should pursue. “One way to minimize risk in your career is to be okay with the uncomfortable. Go and try, working on the short-term steps to eventually reach your objective,” she said.
And Rosenberg’s career mirrors this idea: he is a lawyer who doesn’t come from a tech background but managed to succeed in the high-tech industry by getting into work at tech-focused companies.
“Outside of software, coding, and development, high-tech companies are normal businesses that need lawyers, accountants, finances, and sales. I entered high tech doing that, knowing what I’m good with and working it for a high tech company,” he assured.
AI safety and ethics in high tech industry
The other main topic of the forum was AI safety and ethical development, which, according to the speakers, is an important issue of interest to all major actors currently developing AI.
“For the moment, AI is like a toddler; it just gives you the answer you want to hear without providing input or its own imagination into the thought process,” Kabajah said. “But it’s good that the risks of AI development are being taken care of now, with time to address the problems that it might lead to.”
Haart agrees that this has long been a main concern in AI, with ethics courses taught at the world’s leading universities for the past decade. “In the end, we can see AI as a gun. Guns have safety mechanisms that aim to avoid unnecessary risks, but in the end, it depends on the people building and using them to guarantee that they are safe,” she assured.
“I personally believe in the forces of good, in people doing the correct thing, and that these are the people that are going to win when developing ethical AI models,” she added.
“It’s important to understand that the world won’t be ‘ended by robots,’ AI is not going to take over us,” Rosenberg said, and added that every actor involved in the development of AI is interested in regulating it, creating a framework to work with, and making it safe to use.
Jerusalem, Israel, and the high-tech industry opportunities
According to a press release provided by JYP, “at the core of the initiative is JYP Forum’s mission to build a strong, inclusive community of young professionals connecting talent from across East and West Jerusalem. One common theme at the forum was the significant potential of Israel and Jerusalem, driven by the people who live here.
Kabajah, who was born and raised in the Old City of Jerusalem, thinks that being a Jerusalemite gives a special advantage: “I finished school in Jerusalem, I didn’t speak English, and didn’t even have a driver’s license. But I learned that hard work is the only way to move forward. And I think that is a key aspect of the people from Jerusalem. The city doesn’t give the easy path, but it builds strong people.”
Haart also agrees, noting that there are many hard workers in Israel. “I love hiring people from this country because I find a nice combination between family, hard work, and of course chutzpah.”
“The US and the UAE, where we also have offices, offer a great place to gain capital and investments, while in Israel, thanks to the amazing pool of talent, we have a good way of getting this capital through new developments,” she added.
Rosenberg and NVIDIA also share this thought. “Our latest product, the NVIDIA Vera CPU, has four out of its six chips designed by the Israeli branch of the company. Israel is a really big investment for NVIDIA, to the point that its leadership sees it as its second home outside of the US.”
“As American companies seek exceptional talent across Israel, Jerusalem is emerging as a rising high-tech hub. The American Innovation Forum connects the city’s young professionals directly with global industry and strengthens strategic opportunities on the ground,” said Marc Faust, founder and chairman of the JYP Forum.
