In a blog post, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva highlighted the substantial influence of artificial intelligence (AI) on the global job market, projecting a significant impact on approximately 40 percent of jobs worldwide. In the future, we could see people getting lower salaries and many job roles diminishing.
In a blog post, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva highlighted the big influence of artificial intelligence (AI) on the global job market, projecting a significant impact on approximately 40 percent of jobs worldwide. Georgieva emphasized that advanced economies would face greater risks and opportunities compared to emerging markets and developing economies due to AI's unique ability to affect high-skilled jobs. Here is everything we know.
IMF predicts 40 per cent jobs to be impacted due to AI
According to the IMF's analysis, advanced economies may witness up to 60 percent of jobs being affected by AI. Georgieva explained that while about half of these jobs could benefit from AI integration, leading to increased productivity, the other half might face a downturn. AI applications may take over key tasks currently performed by humans, potentially reducing labor demand, resulting in lower wages, and even job losses in extreme cases.
Georgieva urged policymakers to proactively address the potential consequences of AI, particularly focusing on mitigating inequality and social tensions that may arise. She stressed the importance of implementing comprehensive social safety nets and offering retraining programs for workers vulnerable to job displacement.
While Georgieva expects emerging markets and developing economies to experience fewer immediate disruptions from AI, she emphasized the need for a global strategy to address the evolving landscape of work. The IMF's warning aligns with earlier concerns raised by Goldman Sachs, which estimated that over 300 million jobs could be disrupted by AI.
LinkedIn Vice President Annesh Raman, in a podcast interview last November, discussed these concerns, suggesting that AI's rise could devalue technical skills, emphasizing the increasing importance of soft skills. Raman cautioned about the shrinking shelf life of degrees and highlighted the need for continuous learning and adaptability in the face of evolving job markets. As AI continues to advance, the IMF's call for comprehensive measures highlights the need to opt for proactive global strategies to navigate the transformative impact on the workforce.
We are already seeing this in early days of 2024:
The prediction could turn out to be true because we have already started seeing human jobs getting impacted. It was recently reported that Google has fired over 1,000 employees in departments such as voice assistance and hardware teams as Fitbit founders have left. People in engineering and services areas have also been impacted. It is also being that the company is reorganizing some of its workforce because it has employed some AI tools.
A Paytm spokesperson recently confirmed layoffs of employees and even hinted that AI will soon be eliminating some job roles. "To mitigate the impact on its workforce, Paytm is actively incorporating AI-led automation to replace certain roles, particularly in areas affected by lay-offs," the spokesperson said. It was reported that 1,000 workers were fired by the company. Several other tech giants like Apple and Discord have also laid off employees in the name of saving costs.
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