I was on my usual commute to work one morning last week when I opened my phone and discovered that short-video platforms were overflowing with posts about an AI product named Manus. In just a year, AI has progressed from being a "consultant" that answers questions to an "intelligent colleague" capable of taking over complex tasks traditionally performed by humans. As a mother of two six-year-olds, I experienced, for the first time, the realization that the world my children will encounter may be completely beyond my understanding.
Last year, my programmer husband and I discussed whether "learning to code" would still be beneficial for our child. At that time, AI was primarily focused on "answering questions." However, now Manus can unpack resume files, analyze stock data, organize travel itineraries, and even generate detailed analytical reports—tasks that were once the responsibility of entry-level office workers, data analysts, and administrative assistants. AI now completes in minutes what humans used to take hours or even days to do.
On Xianyu, China's secondhand retail platform owned by Taobao, Manus invitation codes are being resold for up to RMB 90,000. This frenzy reflects a widespread concern over "AI replacing human labor." A tech blogger commented: "Manus is like a versatile intern. It not only comprehends instructions but also autonomously applies tools to accomplish tasks." This made me realize that if my child begins learning “standardized skills” like data entry or basic document processing now, those jobs may no longer exist by the time they enter the job market.
My worries stem from the changing nature of educational objectives. I looked through my child's kindergarten curriculum: phonics, math, literacy, classical poetry… These have always been viewed as “essentials” during my school years, but their significance is being challenged in the age of AI. What impressed me most about Manus was its ability for "autonomous learning" and "cross-domain collaboration." For instance, it can gather real estate data, evaluate neighborhood safety metrics, and even create interactive websites to showcase results—tasks that no longer depend on isolated skills but rather on the capability to break down problems, make use of tools, and execute creatively.
Even as a novice coder, I began to ponder: Could I eventually use Manus to develop a CRM system uniquely suited to my company's requirements? Initially, my husband dismissed this notion when DeepSeek was introduced, but now he suggests, “Maybe it’s actually feasible!”
There's more to this story! This article first appeared on our sister account, jingkids International.
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Images: Siyu He, Manus
The world that our children could encounter might be completely beyond our understanding.