Ai is already stealing jobs in the wine business

Bad news for sommeliers and wine sales professionals: your jobs are already being replaced by AI.

French company Etinsy has begun placing its AI wine merchant kiosks into stores selling wine, the wine-searcher news hub reported.

Supermarkets in France have installed installed the AI units in their wine departments in a bid to help customers choose wines, radio station FranceInfo has revealed. 

The Etinsy AI Advisor (dubbed "Advisor Elio") is promoted as the "first AI-powered humanoid advisor dedicated to the wine and spirits aisles in supermarkets".

Housed in a kiosk similar to those seen in many fast-food restaurants, Elio is designed to respond to vocal prompts.

"Elio is a true virtual wine merchant with whom the customer interacts naturally, verbally, just as they would with a professional in a specialized shop," the Etinsy company says on its website.

France's wine merchants' union is, not surprisingly, unimpressed.

"It's not exactly our definition of the term 'wine merchant'," said professional wine merchants' union (Syndicat des Cavistes Professionels) president Johannes Marcon.

"The true added value is having a real person who can convey their passion and their connection with the winemaker," he added. "It's totally subjective and sometimes disingenuous, but at least it's not impersonal."

The kiosks are expected to roll out across selected stores in the rest of France.

Etinsy, based in a small village outside Martigues in the south of France, says on its website that the "advisor helps every customer find the right product quickly and without waiting, while freeing up in-store teams and improving sales performance.

"Developed from 12 years of field experience, Advisor addresses a real problem in brick-and-mortar retail: the lack of readily available, consistent, and reliable in-store advice. 

"Advisor is an in-house developed technology, protected by patent applications, designed to provide neutral and instant advice, improve the customer journey, and directly contribute to department performance.

"Etinsy develops an in-store advisory solution capable of improving the shopping experience, reducing the operational workload of teams, and increasing sales performance. 

 "Our technology is designed to deliver reliable, instant advice perfectly tailored to each store."

Qantas chooses Adelaide as technology hub

Qantas has chosen Adelaide as the location for a new technology hub opening next year.

The Australian flag carrier is establishing a new Product Innovation Centre in Adelaide to accelerate the delivery of “intuitive, world-leading digital experiences” for the millions of customers who travel with the airline each year.

The Centre is projected to be home to more than 420 highly-skilled technology roles over the next three years, bringing critical innovation capability in-house, the airline says.

The new purpose-built technology and innovation centre, which is being supported by the South Australian Government, will be based in Adelaide’s CBD and open in March 2026.

It will become the home of the airline’s technology product development teams, where product managers, digital experience designers, software engineers, and data and AI specialists will come together to cha ge how customers interact with Qantas.

Qantas is also partnering with Adelaide University to build graduate recruitment pathways directly into the Centre, creating opportunities for South Australian students to help shape the future of travel.

The centre will enable the airline to bring more critical innovation and technology skills in-house, supporting major initiatives, from the growth of its domestic and international network to new customer experiences and AI tools that help frontline teams serve customers better. 

For customers, Qantas says the centre will help deliver better digital experiences at every stage of the journey. From enhanced app functionality, seamless check-in to smarter baggage tracking. It will also develop AI-powered tools that help when travel doesn’t go to plan.

Qantas Group Chief Executive Officer Vanessa Hudson said the centre would transform how the airline delivers customer experiences.

“Innovation has been a core part of the airline’s DNA for more than 100 years,”Hudson said. “This centre marks a new chapter in our efforts to reimagine the travel experience for the millions of customers who fly with us.

“Technology and AI is critical to lifting the customer experience at every part of the journey, from booking to inflight and baggage collection. This new hub will bring the best Australian skilled talent together to build digital products and experiences that make travel easier and more personalised.

“Adelaide gives us access to world-class universities, a thriving tech community, and the ability to scale our in-house capability. It’s an investment in Australian innovation that will deliver real benefits for our customers.”

South Australian Premier the Hon Peter Malinauskas said:
“This historic agreement with Qantas will help supercharge growth in new highly skilled, high tech jobs.

“Through strategic partnerships under this agreement, including the collaboration between Adelaide University and the Australian Institute for Machine Learning (AIML), we are building a strong pipeline of talent with advanced AI and digital skillsets. 

“This initiative will ensure South Australia remains at the forefront of emerging technologies and future workforce opportunities.”

The new Qantas Product Innovation Centre is the latest in a series of investments by the national carrier in South Australia, including the recently opened lounge precinct at Adelaide Airport and the return of international flights from Adelaide to Auckland which launched earlier this month.

A job that will keep you buzzing

If you love bees, and honey, here is a job idea for you.

Tasmanian Beekeepers Association chief Lindsay Bourke is calling on young Australians to consider beekeeping as a career.

Bourke says the beekeeping industry nationally is facing a rapidly ageing workforce and is struggling to attract young people.

“Beekeeping is a great career for people who like to work with their hands outdoors and be creative," he says..

“There is so much to producing honey, especially Leatherwood Honey, it involves caring for the bees, ensuring they are healthy and happy., maintaining the hives, extracting the honey and packaging it for sale.”

Bourke said that in addition to the agricultural side of the profession, beekeeping involves marketing, sales, accounting, public relations and general management, making for the potential for career progression.

Bourke says Australia as a nation desperately needs beekeepers to feed itself.

“Australian agriculture needs bees for crop pollination and without them we run the risk of starving, it’s as serious as that," he says. "So without beekeepers Australia is in a really bad situation.

“That’s a huge reason for young people to consider beekeeping as a profession.”

See https://www.tasmanianbeekeepers.org.au/ and https://leatherwoodhoney.org.au/

Image: Young beekeepers Ange Grabasch and Taiha Jones-Webb with Lindsay Bourke