The Future of the U.S. Workforce Will Rely on AI, But Don’t Count Out Humans Yet

Katherine Newman

Security, Americas

Robots have already started moving into Amazon’s workforce alongside people. 

Artificial intelligence has replaced many skills in recent years – including the skills needed to do some human jobs.

The tech revolution has not gone unnoticed by American workers. A 2018 Gallup poll revealed that 70% of Americans believe AI will eliminate more jobs than it creates.

Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang has sounded the alarm, raising the prospect that millions are at risk for long-term joblessness.

I’m an expert on labor markets in the U.S., and I believe that AI will undoubtedly change the future of U.S. labor – but Yang is also exaggerating the impact AI will have on the workforce.

The solution to job loss sparked by automation lies less in Yang’s guaranteed income proposal, and more in reskilling the labor force, a process that would involve educating workers to do the jobs a more automated economy will require.

Growing Industries

MIT economist Frank Levy has noted that AI generally automates parts of occupations rather than the whole job.