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AI and Jobs: What the Rise of Automation Means for the Human Workforce

AI in the Workplace: Navigating Job Disruption and Human Potential

Author

Matt
June 01, 2025

Hey all!

Welcome to this week’s “Can AI Do That?” post —

This week’s focus - AI in the Workplace: Navigating Job Disruption and Human Potential

One of the most common questions people are asking today is: "Will AI take my job?" 

As artificial intelligence becomes more advanced and capable of automating tasks once performed by humans, workers across industries are grappling with uncertainty about their roles. This question reflects growing concerns about job displacement, especially in fields like customer service, data entry, entry level finance jobs, and even software development.

At the same time, it also opens up a broader conversation about how AI might evolve—not just to replace jobs, but to augment human work, create new roles, and shift the skills employers value most.

As AI continues to grow and evolve, it’s important to consider both sides of the coin — AI Displacement & AI Enhancement:

🤖 Potential Job Displacement:

  • AI's Impact on Entry-Level Positions in Tech Companies (PYMNTS.com)
    Mike Krieger, Chief Product Officer at Anthropic and co-founder of Instagram, highlighted a shift in hiring practices within AI companies. “In the long run, though, I do think that the way that will manifest is you just need [fewer] engineers,” Krieger explained. Anthropic now prioritizes experienced engineers over new graduates, partly due to the evolving demands of the industry and the capabilities of AI tools like Claude. However, Mike did allude to how advances in AI will benefit certain roles, like Product Managers & Designers, as they’ll be able to more efficiently prototype concepts.

  • Warnings About AI Eliminating Entry-Level White-Collar Jobs (Axios)
    Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, warned that AI could eliminate up to 50% of entry-level white-collar jobs within the next five years. This shift could lead to significant unemployment rates if proactive measures aren't taken. "Cancer is cured, the economy grows at 10% a year, the budget is balanced — and 20% of people don't have jobs." 

  • Real-Life Stories of Job Displacement Due to AI (Guardian)
    The Guardian shared accounts of individuals who lost their jobs as AI tools replaced human roles. For instance, a Polish journalist was let go when AI avatars took over radio shows, and an artist reports a 67% decrease in monthly projects due to potential clients leveraging Gen AI platforms, like Midjourney, vs human-generated originals.

Although it can be concerning to hear about how AI might impact jobs, many experts emphasize that AI is more likely to enhance the human workforce—by automating repetitive tasks and unlocking new opportunities—rather than replace it entirely.

An article from the Stanford Social Innovation Review discusses various “paths” towards an AI future: One path focuses on pure automation, while another focuses on “creating new tasks and capabilities for humans, rather than sidelining them.” Leveraging AI to automate repetitive, time consuming tasks opens up opportunities for humans to focus on larger projects and more fulfilling work. This week, Mark Cuban shared how he believes AI will help grow the economy and need for human workforce, not shrink it. 

“New companies with new jobs will come from AI and increase TOTAL employment.”

Mark Cuban

The debate over how AI will ultimately impact the human workforce is far from settled—and likely won’t be any time soon.

Regardless of where you stand, one thing is clear: the best way to prepare for the future is to stay informed and start building AI-specific skills now. 

From understanding how AI tools work to learning how to use them in your field, investing in your knowledge today is the most practical way to stay relevant tomorrow.