At least four in 10 companies around the world are likely to cut staff as advances in artificial intelligence (AI) continue, a new study has found.
The latest survey from the World Economic Forum (WEF)Future of work reportAccording to , the “increasing capabilities and prevalence” of AI has led 41 percent of employers surveyed to say they would reduce their workforce within the next five years if the technology could replicate tasks. .
“As we enter 2025, the landscape of work will continue to rapidly evolve, with transformative breakthroughs in generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) in particular reshaping industries and operations across all sectors.” WEF Managing Director Director Saadia Zahidi said in the report.
“However, these technological advances are converging with broader challenges such as economic instability, geoeconomic realignment, environmental issues and changing societal expectations,” she added.
The WEF study also found that 77% of employers surveyed said they would adopt strategies to “reskill and upskill” existing employees to work alongside artificial intelligence.
AI has gained global attention in recent years, with the release of products such as OpenAI's ChatGPT in November 2022, challenging preconceptions about how it can be used in the workplace.
In a survey published last fall by the New York Federal Reserve's Liberty Street Economics Blog, 43% of Americans said they believe generative AI tools will reduce jobs as technology advances.
The Future of Jobs Report study includes surveys of 1,043 companies compiled from May to September 2024.
