NANCHANG, March 18 (Xinhua) -- Wearing a yellow helmet, a blue-collar suit and numerous medals on his chest, Liu Hui's photo has been frequently featured in media outlets.
Working at Nanchang-based Jiangling Motors Group Co., Ltd., the veteran automotive technician was honored with the title of "national model worker" 10 years ago and currently serves as a grassroots deputy of China's top legislature.
However, amid the AI boom, the fear of being replaced has become increasingly prevalent in traditional industries. Liu is no exception.
"Will robots replace industrial workers like me in the future?" Liu posed the question to DeepSeek recently.
In the old days, technicians like Liu relied on the tactile mastery of hands. Liu became well-known thanks to an online video in which he used a high-speed drill to bore through an eggshell without piercing the membrane underneath.
He takes pride in artisan secrets. "A human hair is 0.07 millimeters wide, but without the aid of any instruments, just through fingertip sensitivity, I can detect variations as minute as 0.01 millimeter," he said.
Liu began his career as an automotive mold technician at the age of 18. Over the past 38 years, he has grown into a chief technician and led a state-level master technician studio.
He has also witnessed significant transformations in the industry, moving from manual drafting to computer design, and from purely manual production to fully automated production lines.
"The times are changing so fast," he said, noting his shock at the increasing levels of digitalization and automation in factories. In Jiangling's Fushan workshop, the production line can switch between four distinct vehicle models within 12 seconds, and more than 430 robots can operate continuously. The automation rate reaches 98 percent.
"It's evident that human technicians cannot match the performance of machines in efficiency," Liu said, "The traditional methods that relied on manual skills are no longer viable."
He realizes that artisans today must not only have expertise but also innovate and apply interdisciplinary knowledge. They need to understand AI drawing, data analysis and programming, and be able to operate robots and repair automated equipment.
"In the era of AI, factory systems are becoming increasingly complex, and tools are becoming more sophisticated, requiring workers to gain vast amounts of new knowledge," said Min Weidong, head of a metaverse research institute at Nanchang University.
Min said that the skills of an artisan must align with the production tools and productivity of their time, emphasizing the necessity of utilizing tools such as AI.
China is actively embracing emerging technologies while ensuring that workers in traditional industries are not left behind.
According to this year's government work report, China will redouble efforts to nurture highly-skilled workers, and "carry out large-scale plans for upgrading vocational skills to increase the supply of highly-skilled personnel urgently needed in the manufacturing and service sectors."
The country currently has over 200 million skilled workers, of whom more than 60 million are highly skilled. However, this number is insufficient, with proportions remaining low over the long term.
Wen Fei, a factory worker with over 30 years of experience at Pingxiang Pinggang Anyuan Iron and Steel Co., Ltd in Jiangxi Province, believes that craftsmanship is never outdated, and the essence of craftsmanship is both dedication and innovation.
"Technicians must continually learn and explore new technologies and methods to master unique skills," Wen said.
As for the question about AI substitution, Liu said DeepSeek replied that machines will partially replace workers in the future. Jobs with high repetitiveness and high risk are more likely to be automated, but positions requiring creativity and flexibility are much harder to replace, it said.
"In the future, there will be more human-machine collaboration. Robots will handle the physical labor, while humans will be in charge of supervision and creative optimization," Liu said.
"Technicians of the future will need not only dexterity but also creativity." ■
