Nobel Prize-winning economist Daron Acemoglu has warned that artificial intelligence could triple unemployment within the next decade if the technology continues to advance at its current pace.
In an interview with CBS News for the program “60 Minutes,” Acemoglu stated that the disruption caused by AI is “unprecedented.” He noted that while the first phase of the Industrial Revolution took 80 years to unfold, the current shift is occurring in just one or two years.
Acemoglu argued that although AI training jobs exist, the number of people employed in these positions is small compared to the number of workers who will be replaced. He emphasized that the speed of this transition poses a significant risk to the workforce.
The warning comes amid growing public concern. A Pew Research study found that nearly three-fourths of Americans fear AI could cost them their jobs. Additionally, a September report from the McKinsey Global Institute projected that AI could push 11 million U.S. workers into new careers by 2035.
The article also highlighted differing perspectives on the impact of AI. Mercor CEO Brendan Foody described the shift as a natural evolution that could free workers from repetitive tasks, pointing to AI training as a growing career path that can pay up to $200 an hour. Clara Shih, a former AI executive at Salesforce Inc. (NYSE: CRM) and Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ: META), told CBS News that she left her job after watching AI shrink teams that once required dozens of people down to a handful.
Wall Street has echoed similar concerns. Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE: GS) recently found that entry-level workers are facing the sharpest AI-related hiring pressure, with call-center employment running well below historical trends in the U.S., Canada, and Germany. However, Johns Hopkins economist Steve Hanke has pushed back, suggesting that AI might end up being a net job creator due to the steep cost of AI infrastructure, which could slow how fast companies replace workers.
