AI at work

What's in the lesson

1. 1Warm-up
2. 2In this lesson
3. 3Guess the words (1)Vocabulary exercise
4. 4Guess the words (2)Vocabulary exercise
5. 5Check the wordsVocabulary
6. 6Useful phrases: announcing a changeVocabulary
7. 7Check your understandingReading comprehension
8. 8Listen: Freya's announcementListening comprehension
9. 9Use the new wordsVocabulary exercise
10. 10What does it mean?Grammar exercise
11. 11An email about a new toolGrammar exercise
12. 12Three future forms with willGrammar rule
13. 13Choose the right formGrammar exercise
14. 14Mikkel's planGrammar exercise
15. 15Say it naturallySpeaking practice
16. 16Present your AI planSpeaking practice
17. 17Let's discussDiscussion
18. 18Wrap-up

Homework

1. 1Homework: closest meaningVocabulary exercise
2. 2Homework: your sentencesVocabulary exercise
3. 3Homework: find the mistakeGrammar exercise
4. 4Homework: an email about a new toolDiscussion

Words

• automate/ˈɔːtəmeɪt/

  to make a machine or a computer do a job that people used to do (automation: the noun)

• AI agent/ˌeɪ ˈaɪ ˌeɪdʒənt/

  an AI program that can carry out several steps toward a goal with little human help

• prompt/prɑːmpt/

  the instruction or question that you type or say to an AI tool (also a verb: to prompt)

• generate/ˈdʒenəreɪt/

  to produce or create something, like text, images, ideas, energy or money

• refine/rɪˈfaɪn/

  to improve something by making small changes to it

• implement/ˈɪmplɪment/

  to start using a plan, a system or a decision, and make it work (implementation: the noun)

• mundane/mʌnˈdeɪn/

  ordinary and boring

• skeptic/ˈskeptɪk/

  a person who doubts that something is true, useful or as good as people say (skeptical: the adjective)

• oversight/ˈoʊvərsaɪt/

  the job of watching over work or a process to make sure that it is done correctly (human oversight)

• upskill/ˈʌpskɪl/

  to learn new skills for your job, or to teach workers new skills (upskilling: the noun)

Two slides from the lesson

Warm-up

Let's talk about technology at work.

1. Think of a normal workday. Which part of it could a machine already do, and which part never could?
2. Have you ever been surprised, in a good or a bad way, by something an AI tool wrote or made for you?
3. How do people at your company or school feel about AI: excited, worried or not very interested?

Grammar rule

Three future forms with will

Form	Use it for…	Example
will be + -ing (future continuous)	an action in progress at a time in the future; something that will be a normal, ongoing part of the future	At nine tomorrow morning, I will be flying to Atlanta.
will have + past participle (future perfect)	something finished before a time in the future: by + a time, or by the time + the present simple	Our new designer starts in May. By then, we will have set up her accounts.
will be + past participle (future passive)	what will happen to something, when the doer is not important or is obvious; add by + the doer when it matters	Expense claims will be paid every Friday. The contract will be reviewed by a lawyer.

Negatives and questions: won't be coming, won't have started, won't be replaced · Will they be traveling…? Will she have started…? Will it be done by Monday? Will you be + -ing? is also a polite way to ask about someone's plans.

After by the time, use the present simple, not will: By the time the auditors arrive, we'll have closed the books. (not by the time they will arrive). And by is not until: The report will be ready by Friday (at some time before Friday). I'll be in training until Friday (all the time up to Friday).

The passive can be perfect too: will have been + past participle. By June, the old servers will have been switched off.

State verbs (know, belong, cost, seem) are not usually continuous: You'll know the results on Friday.

Nobody knows the future of AI for sure, so be careful with predictions: AI will probably change most office jobs. Many tasks are likely to be automated. And keep the forms complete: not will be use, will have finish or will checked.