LinkedIn, owned by Microsoft, has announced that its user base has grown to over one billion and is also introducing new artificial intelligence (AI) service offerings for its premium subscribers.
LinkedIn's achievement of one billion users puts it in the impressive company of online platforms and other top-tier social networks. It's noteworthy that 80% of LinkedIn's most recent members are international users, showing the company's global appeal, according to Reuters.
Although LinkedIn offers a free membership, it also offers other subscription options. For a monthly fee of $39.99, premium subscribers gain access to innovative AI tools designed to enhance professional networking and job search results.
LinkedIn logos were displayed on an iPhone and computer screen on August 3, 2016 in London, England.
The Advantages of LinkedIn's AI Features
One key AI feature offered to premium users is an algorithm that scans user profiles to gauge job suitability. In a competitive job market where users face a sea of job listings, these AI-driven insights can help guide their job search. The AI can even recommend changes to their profile to make them more attractive as job candidates.
As stated by Tomer Cohen, LinkedIn's Chief Product Officer, this feature aims to help users not just find jobs but build substantial relationships in a single session. These AI-led suggestions could boost their confidence in their job hunt undertakings.
In addition to employment-focused AI tools, LinkedIn has revealed a new function that summarizes lengthy messages into short bullet points tailored for each user. By producing varied takeaways for different professions, such as stockbrokers and sales professionals, this feature improves content relevance for users.
In another affirmation of its dedication to artificial intelligence, LinkedIn has launched an AI-powered chatbot touted as a "career coach." Based on the GPT-4 technology from OpenAI (a startup backed heavily by Microsoft), this chatbot guides job application processes, helping users decide if an opportunity is worth pursuing.
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Erran Berger, LinkedIn's vice president of product engineering, said that the firm's engineering group has established several tools to improve the user experience.
"We had to build a lot of stuff on our end to work around that and to make this a snappy experience. When you're having these conversational experiences, sometimes it's almost like search - you expect it to be instant. And so there's real platform capabilities we had to develop to make that possible," Berger said, as quoted by CNBC.
Staying Relevant
LinkedIn's push towards increasing AI capabilities is due to several practical reasons, per TechCrunch. A primary motivation is addressing challenges tied to social media use, a common issue on platforms like LinkedIn where professional presence is crucial. The idea is to encourage more active member participation, thereby amplifying overall user engagement on the online platform.
As the Microsoft-owned social media platform steps into its third decade, it aims to stay relevant amidst the growing fascination for artificial intelligence. It has been observed that introducing generative AI technologies can play a vital role in maintaining user activity and promoting deeper interaction.
Lastly, these AI capabilities intend to boost LinkedIn's premium subscription segment, which has been showing robust growth. Even though the company hasn't divulged exact revenue figures from paid memberships, the premiums saw an impressive 55% year-on-year increase last month.
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