This doctor is training AI to do her job. And it’s a booming business

This doctor is training AI to do her job. And it’s a booming business

https://www.cnn.com/2026/02/17/business/ai-experts-training-jobs

Publish Date: 2026-02-17 03:00:00

Source Domain: www.cnn.com

Here’s a summary of the article presented as an unordered list with 6 key points:

* Dr. Alice Chiao, formerly an emergency medicine teacher at Stanford University, now trains AI chatbots to perform tasks traditionally handled by professionals using reinforcement learning.
* Reinforcement learning involves grading and refining AI responses, overseen by experts like Chiao in various fields, creating a burgeoning $17 billion industry.
* Chiao, working with companies such as Mercor, helps train AI to assist professionals by taking over menial tasks, aiming to free up doctors to focus on patient care.
* The growing industry has sparked concerns about the future of work; AI is seen by some as a potential threat to jobs, though Chiao and others see it as an enhancement to professional roles.
* AI is trained on vast datasets and through reinforcement from human experts, but tasks like humor creation, which are subjective, pose a unique challenge.
* Mercor, co-founded by young entrepreneurs, was initially a human resource platform before shifting focus to training AI models, now a multi-billion-dollar venture and a significant player in shaping the future of AI-assisted work.