I keep reading about the rise of AI. The good news is it’s going to make our lives infinitely easier, revolutionizing how we complete practically every human task. The bad news is multilayered. To start, it will greatly diminish or even extinguish our creativity, imagination, intuition and sense of wonder. Because why explore a topic in depth or dive into an experience when we can just ask “Chat”?

More immediately, it’s going to put many of us out of work.

The latest prognostication is that it’s not just service sector workers and truck drivers whose jobs will be automated into oblivion but many white-collar workers too. Mid-career professionals might be spared for now, but heaven help our kids, because many of the entry-level jobs into which colleges funnel graduates may not exist much longer.

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei recently predicted that AI will eliminate half of all entry-level jobs requiring a college degree within the next five years. Even jobs requiring advanced degrees may be swept away by the coming AI tsunami.

Teachers are already using AI to generate writing prompts, grade student work and create personalized learning experiences tailored to each student. Marketing professionals are using AI to quickly turn a concept into a design and then tweak it and tweak it again until it’s just right.

AI systems are being deployed to analyze biometrics, interpret imaging and assimilate datapoints to help doctors diagnose diseases, and indicate which treatment options are likely to be most effective.

I don’t think it will be long before employers can remove many of the people currently wielding these tools entirely from the workflow.

But don’t take my word for it. Klarna CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski recently said, “I am of the opinion that AI can already do all of the jobs that we, as humans, do.”

If that’s true, we will soon have a lot more people outside the workforce looking in. The employees who survive will be those most adept at deploying the innately human skills computers cannot simulate — the ability to creatively solve problems, collaborate across disciplinary boundaries, tolerate ambiguity and, not least, apply empathy and compassion in decision-making. AI proficiency will also be essential to survival in this new economy.

In the near term, workers possessing AI fluency will be best positioned to retain value in employers’ eyes. It is essential, therefore, that colleges train their students to use AI intentionally, effectively and ethically while continuing to nurture their uniquely human attributes.

But the nature of work will change as we engage increasingly with technology at the expense of interactions with our fellow humans. This shift will pose new challenges to human happiness.

According to a Pew study, our careers rank among the most common sources of meaning in our lives. Pew explained, “People mention finding meaning in myriad aspects of their work, such as the mission of their own profession, their co-workers, or the sense of personal growth it provides them.”

Without careers, or within ones more focused on technology, how will we find meaning?

Psychologist Samuel T. Wilkinson, author of the book “Purpose,” argues that maintaining close connections with other people, including family members, is central to our happiness. He suggests belief in a higher power is another key.

As the father of two, I can attest that raising children is quite meaningful and does provide me with a sense of purpose. And I recognize that participating in a faith community and practicing a religion enhance happiness and instill a sense of purpose for many.

But I would need to be occupied, if even in the absence of an occupation.

And here, at last, is where we arrive at the humanities, rising from the ashes of their widely rumored demise. Not only will they continue to endow us with the human skills that help keep us relevant in an AI-driven workforce, but they will bring meaning to our lives should our careers cease to play that central role.

I know this because we already have a whole class of people no longer relying on their careers to bring meaning to their lives, and they seem to be doing fine. I’m referring to our retirees. Having managed careers and/or raised families, many of the senior citizens I know now travel, exploring the world in all its complexity. They read. They paint or draw or write. They immerse themselves in their local performing arts scenes. They attend gallery openings and cultural events.

Some also frequent the humanities lecture series I lead at the University of New England. Those who join us experience curiosity, engage in deep reflection and participate in discourse with other enthusiastic readers and thinkers.

What exactly does the future hold for the human worker in an AI-powered world? I won’t pretend to know. But for the sake of humanity, I am grateful we’ll have the humanities to fill our lives with meaning if the machines really do take our jobs. And, in the meantime, I am grateful that the skills derived from the humanities will give us a fighting chance.