IMF chief warns AI could disrupt 40% of jobs worldwide, threaten entry-level workers
Artificial intelligence could disrupt 40% of jobs worldwide, with recent college graduates facing shrinking employment opportunities as the technology transforms the global workforce, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva warned Monday.
Speaking during the IMF and World Bank’s annual meetings in Bangkok, Thailand, Georgieva described AI as a “slow-moving tsunami” that could have profound consequences for employment, education, economic growth and government tax revenues, according to Reuters.
The IMF estimates that AI could eventually lead to 40% of jobs being augmented, downgraded or eliminated, Georgieva said.
“It is a transformative technology. It so completely changes how we work, how we live,” she said.
Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, speaking at the same event, warned that AI was already reducing opportunities for young workers entering the labor market.
“There is a particular problem that we have to address very soon … and that is that, the first rung in employment, your first job upon graduation, is now seeing less demand,” he said.
Despite the concerns about employment, Georgieva said booming investment in AI infrastructure was helping sustain global economic growth at around 3%, even as an energy supply shock weighs on the economy.
The IMF chief estimated that AI investment could boost growth in advanced Asian economies by 0.5 to 1 percentage point, while emerging Asian economies could see gains of 0.2 to 0.8 percentage point.
“AI, love it, hate it. It’s already here,” Georgieva said.
Reuters contributed to this report.