A group of tech mavens wrote an open letter two years ago about how artificial intelligence (AI) was coming to “automate away all the jobs” and upend society. It looks like we should have listened to them, because that time has now come. Layoffs are sweeping America, with thousands of people at Microsoft and Walmart, as well as other iconic companies, losing their jobs. This time, it’s not blue-collar and factory workers being laid off — it’s college graduates with white-collar jobs in tech, finance, law and consulting. Entry-level jobs are vanishing the fastest, with chatbots taking over data entry and customer service jobs. The AI layoffs have begun, and those who don’t embrace technology will be irrelevant in the next five years. Proctor & Gamble, which makes diapers, laundry detergent, and other household items, recently said it would cut 7,000 jobs within the next two years. Microsoft announced the chopping of 6,000 staff, targeting “managerial flab.” Some are spooked by President Trump’s tariffs, while others say something deeper is happening. They say AI is nothing more than a scapegoat for executives who want to downsize for economic reasons and are blaming technology so as not to panic shareholders. There’s just one question that no one seems to want to answer: When AI robots take over all the jobs, who’s going to be left to spend the money that keeps the economy afloat?
