Will AI take my job?

In the short to medium term, the answer will depend on what sector you're in. But in the long run, the answer is yes—for almost everyone. 

These days, AI tools are outperforming us in areas like general knowledge, image recognition, and writing essays. They can even drive cars more safely than we can. This begs the question: are our jobs at risk? 

Actual poster in San Francisco in 2024. Credit: Getty Images

The good news is that—so far—these systems are limited. They’re good at answering questions, searching content online, and generating advice on day-to-day matters; but they can’t handle real-world tasks on their own. While they may make us more productive in our work and daily lives, they rarely replace us completely. Instead, in certain lines of work (like translation and computer programming), a single person can now do the work of five to ten people with the help of AI. These jobs still exist but in much smaller numbers. 

The question is, if human intelligence is staying roughly the same, and AI is getting better by the day, how long will it be before AI can do everything better than us? According to leading AI training labs like OpenAi and Google DeepMind, the answer is one to five years. And robotics that can outperform us physically may not be far behind. Realistically, humans won't be able to compete against systems that can do our work better, cheaper and faster, meaning AI has the potential to sweep an overwhelming majority of jobs in the next ten years. 

There will of course be some exceptions. Human-to-human competition (professional sports, games) is one of them, as are jobs where a human is legally required to be accountable for the work or for other humans (doctors, teachers). But most people will find their jobs affected or replaced by AI relatively soon.

This is a massive transition, and governments are asleep at the wheel. It's essential that we start thinking through this transition methodically and putting the pieces in place to ensure we end up with a future we want.

Find out more about AI’s impact on jobs with these resources: