AI has become a dream for managers and a nightmare for workers, as they seek to replace a significant portion of their workforce and reduce the salaries of those who remain.
Almost half of managers are considering replacing their employees with artificial intelligence, with many willing to delegate some of workers’ functions to AI and subsequently decrease their wages. It appears that achieving harmonious coexistence between humans and AI in the workplace may prove elusive.
AI has emerged as a problem, with around 50% of managers viewing the termination of some or all of their employees and the adoption of AI as replacements as acceptable. According to a study conducted in early 2024 by Beautiful.ai, a company specializing in AI-based presentation software, this trend is gaining traction.
Market analysis also reveals that for numerous employers, AI not only serves as a means to downsize their workforce but also as a tool to reduce operating costs by shifting employee functions to AI and subsequently cutting salaries.
The survey, which included over 3,000 managers, indicated that 41% expressed interest in replacing human employees. This outcome, as reported by TechSpot, underscores the unsubstantiated nature of claims regarding the possibility of achieving peaceful coexistence between human staff and artificial intelligence.
rtificial intelligence is a real problem for the working population . People may be left without work and without money
There is still no light at the end of the tunnel.
Other findings from Beautiful.ai also fail to bring satisfaction to employed staff. For instance, 48% of employers stated that their businesses would experience financial benefits from replacing a large number of employees with artificial intelligence tools.
Furthermore, 40% openly acknowledged that, in their view, a single artificial intelligence could effortlessly replace several employees simultaneously. They are also confident that such digitization of the workforce would not compromise overall team productivity.
Regarding wage matters, the outlook is bleak. 45% of employers openly admitted to considering artificial tools as an opportunity to reduce employee salaries. They justify this by suggesting that some tasks currently performed by staff could be delegated to algorithms.
There were also managers who harbored dreams of observing “negative growth” in the “operating expenses” column of their company’s financial reports as soon as possible. 12% of respondents stated they are already employing AI with hopes of downsizing and saving money on employee salaries.
All these disheartening statistics collected by Beautiful.ai analysts are consistent with the results of similar studies conducted in 2023. For instance, in September 2023, survey results were published indicating that artificial intelligence would displace at least 2 million jobs in the US by 2030.
However, there are even grimmer forecasts regarding the digitization of work. TechSpot cites data from an earlier study suggesting that generative AI could significantly impact 300 million jobs worldwide in the foreseeable future.
The seed of panic has been sown. The managers and employers who participated in the survey are well aware that their subordinates are experiencing anxiety. 62% of them expressed fear that AI tools would ultimately lead to job losses for employees.
Moreover, 66% of managers stated that their employees are afraid of being terminated due to the implementation of AI during 2024.
What goes around comes around. Having instilled fear in staff about the grim prospect of unemployment or reduced wages, managers eventually adopted a similar panicked attitude. 90% of respondents surveyed among those already using AI to enhance productivity in their teams expressed concern that AI tools would result in lower wages not only for ordinary employees but also for management teams.
64% of respondents agreed that artificial intelligence has already matched or even surpassed the performance of many experienced managers.
This concern is widespread, with about half of the participants in the Beautiful.ai survey expressing apprehension that AI tools will contribute to lower wages across all sectors of the economy, at least in the United States. TechSpot also reports a significant number of layoffs in the tech industry since the beginning of 2023, attributing it in part to the widespread adoption of generative AI, alongside the overhiring during the coronavirus pandemic.