Andy Burnham made headlines within his first few weeks as PM by arguing that, while artificial intelligence might be able to create PowerPoint presentations, it can't build homes, install heat pumps or deliver the infrastructure Britain needs.

He's right.

The UK's energy transition will always depend on skilled people. AI is a tool. It cannot construct carbon capture projects, maintain offshore infrastructure or safely operate complex industrial facilities. Engineering remains, and always will remain, a human profession.

But if Mr Burnham's comments have reignited the debate around skills, they should also encourage us to rethink what we mean by "green skills".

Are we asking the right questions?

For years, the conversation has focused on a key issue: how do we ensure we have enough people with the necessary skills to support future low-carbon industries?

As policymakers look to tackle the growing number of young people not in education, employment or training (NEETs), creating more routes into skilled engineering careers is undoubtedly part of the solution.

But recruitment of new talent alone won't determine whether the UK delivers the energy transition.

The bigger challenge is ensuring today's workforce are reskilled, enabling them to move into new green jobs, and tomorrow's entrants are digitally-savvy, but also have the traditional skills they'll actually need as engineering evolves.

AI can have a key role but it isn't to replace engineers. It’s to be part of their toolkit.

AI won’t replace engineers

Discussions about AI often become polarised. Either it's presented as a threat to jobs or dismissed as something with little relevance to practical industries.

The reality is much more nuanced.

Tomorrow's engineers will still need all of their traditional, technical expertise and sound judgement built on years of practical experience. They'll still be responsible for solving complex problems, making critical decisions and operating essential infrastructure safely.

What will change is how they do those jobs.

AI already has the potential to help engineers interrogate vast amounts of operational data, identify patterns more quickly, streamline documentation and support faster, better-informed decision making. Used well, it removes time-consuming administrative tasks and frees up engineers to spend more of their valuable time applying the skills only they possess.

That's not replacing people. It's making skilled people even more effective.

We’ve seen this before

This isn't the first time technology has prompted concerns about the future of work.

When automation and robotics transformed manufacturing, many feared machines would replace human workers altogether. Instead, they changed the nature of work. Productivity improved, new opportunities emerged and people developed new skills alongside new technologies.

And Computer Aided Design (CAD) didn’t replace architects and engineers – it empowered them to do their work faster, more efficiently, and more precisely.

We should view AI through the same lens.

It represents another step in that evolution – one that gives engineers better tools, rather than making them obsolete.

That shift is particularly important when it comes to addressing one of the energy sector's biggest long-term workforce challenges.

Across the energy industry, many experienced engineers and technical specialists will retire over the next decade. Along with them goes decades of operational knowledge that cannot simply be replaced by recruiting graduates, however talented they may be.

AI has the potential to help capture that expertise, organise it and make it more accessible to younger engineers, accelerating learning while ensuring valuable knowledge isn't lost as experienced professionals leave the workforce.

Redefining green skills 

That's why the UK's green skills debate needs to move on.

Success won't simply be measured by how the number of people we recruit. It will depend on how we equip them with the capabilities they'll need throughout their careers and make smart use of tools like AI to move fast and efficiently.

Engineering expertise will always sit at the heart of the energy transition, But it will be complemented by digital capabilities and confidence in working alongside AI-powered tools.

For employers, that means investing in attracting new talent as well as upskilling the experienced workforce already delivering today's energy systems.

For educators, it means ensuring digital literacy runs in parallel alongside technical excellence, not treated as a separate discipline.

And for policymakers, it means recognising that building the workforce of the future isn't simply about increasing numbers. It's about preparing people for how engineering itself is changing.

If we're serious about delivering net zero, strengthening energy security and creating long-term skilled jobs, that's the green skills debate we should be having.

And Andy Burnham is right. AI won't build Britain's energy infrastructure.

But it could help build a workforce that's better equipped to deliver it.