Honeywell says that 20% of the company’s software code is written by GitHub Copilot and other AI-assistant coding tools. But, does that mean that the industrial giant’s embrace of AI has corresponded with a 20% reduction in that team’s workforce?No, according to Suresh Venkatarayalu, the chief technology officer and president of the company’s software-focused division, Honeywell Connected Enterprise. “What has changed is the type of developer skill sets,” said Venkatarayalu at the Fortune Brainstorm Tech conference held last week in Park City, Utah.With less time needed to write code, Honeywell’s software developers can perform more complex work, including spending more time in the field with customers to solve their system integration needs. For decades, the industrial sector has been embracing automation technologies that have made it easier to move goods across the factory floor, perform quality control inspections, and monitor machinery to predict when a fix may be in order before any breakdowns occur. Workers have also gotten more access to AI-enabled tools, helping recommend when supplies need reordering, predict demand from customers, and help handle repetitive back-office tasks. AI represents yet another new way to rethink manufacturing automation. Many are still early in their adoption journey, with only 29% using AI or machine learning at the factory or network level, and just one out of four having deployed generative AI at that scale, according to a survey of 600 executives from large manufacturing companies by consultancy Deloitte.Jaime Mineart, SVP and CTO of construction and mining equipment manufacturer Caterpillar, joined Venkatarayalu during the panel discussion and shared leaders need to change how their workers engage with technology. That might include classes in prompt engineering, so they know how to get the most out of large language models, specialized training in how to work alongside robots, or lessons on how to glean insights from the data streaming from a more connected manufacturing ecosystem. “It’s huge change management,” Mineart said. The biggest challenges that they will need to solve will be related to both labor capability and labor availability, she added.Venkatarayalu sees things slightly differently. In the U.S. and other developed markets, he believes that there is a labor shortage. But in higher growth regions, the problem is more focused on the skills gap.“The only way to offset the labor shortage and a skills shortage is to augment with something, and that something is AI,” said Venkatarayalu.A survey conducted by the National Association of Manufacturers last year found that nearly 60% of manufacturers report that their inability to attract and retain employees is their top challenge. A separate study by Deloitte and The Manufacturing Institute last year showed that 1.9 million U.S. manufacturing jobs could go unfilled over a decade if the talent woes aren’t addressed.Meanwhile, the median tenure of a manufacturing worker has slipped from 5.9 years in 2014 to 4.9 years in 2024, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.Mineart said automation and AI can help move workers away from less safe, duller, and more repetitive tasks. “Those are jobs that robots, robotics, and technology can really do very, very well, alongside that human capability and that human creativity to get more productivity and safer work sites,” she said.Caterpillar and Honeywell share some similarities in that they are both over a century old and are on the Fortune 500 (Caterpillar at 64, Honeywell at 119). But their AI journeys are evolving in different ways. Honeywell, which is in the process of splitting itself into three different companies, has launched new generative AI features for customers including an AI assistant to automate tasks for operators and production workers and has inked partnerships with Google, Chevron, and Qualcomm to collaborate more on AI innovation.Caterpillar’s revenue is getting a boost from the data center boom that’s leading to stronger sales of the company’s generators. It has also pledged $100 million over the next five years to upskill workers on evolving technologies, including AI.“When you think about bringing manufacturing back into the United States, we have to reimagine how we are going to do that,” said Mineart.John KellSend thoughts or suggestions to CIO Intelligence here.This story was originally featured on Fortune.com