Streaming Giant Netflix Lists AI Job at $900,000 as Writer Strike Continues

Do you enjoy stream services and have a keen eye for machine learning product management? If so, then you might want to take a look at this listing recently put up by the streaming giant Netflix. The salary, which seems a high range of $900,000 for an AI-focused position comes at the heels of the ongoing writer’s strike.

The reason that this new job listing is raising some eyebrows is due to fears related to AI taking over significant portions of the writer’s room. This is one reason the writers are striking, though there it’s a complex issue that warrants another discussion.

As part of the job listing, it’s stated that AI would be used to “create great content“. So the listing is clearly showing that Netflix is interested in at least exploring the potential of AI in creating original content. And it wouldn’t be the first time the technology has been used this way.

All one has to do is wander through YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and other video-focused platforms to see a variety of AI-generated content making the rounds. There are games on the PC gaming platform Steam that are all but AI-generated.

But what makes this significant are a few factors. First, Netflix holds a large market share in the streaming world and often what they do gets copied by other services. Second, the listing alludes to further integration of AI into “all areas of the business“. Though this could mean several things, Netflix hasn’t been shy about using data science and analytics when it comes to driving its business model.

And as mentioned earlier, this comes at a time of mounting fears related to AI and its impact on the labor market. One of the complaints writers have during the strike has to do with AI in the writer’s room. Using AI-generated stories, which in turn would reduce their roles.

But it’s not just in entertainment. As Goldman Sachs reported back in March, hundreds of millions of jobs will be impacted by generative AI. For some, such as Microsoft’s Satya Nadella, it will provide an enhancement to existing workers, benefitting them in the long run.

Though others, such as DeepMind Co-founder,  Mustafa Suleyman, see AI as a potential disruptor. So much so that he called on governments to begin making plans on how to deal with displaced workers.  In the case of Netflix, this isn’t the first AI-related job the company has posted.

The company is also in search of a technical director for generative AI at its new gaming studio. The pay is a whopping $650,000. So it seems that Netflix is considering greater investment into AI.

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