The biggest debate around artificial intelligence has centered on whether it will create widespread unemployment. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) founder Jeff Bezos and Ark Invest CEO Cathie Wood argue the opposite: AI will increase demand for workers and create labor shortages.
Speaking at the VivaTech conference in Paris, Bezos once again dismissed concerns that AI will make humans redundant, arguing instead that the technology will expand what businesses can achieve.
“I totally disagree with this point of view. And I think, in fact, AI is going to create a labor shortage,” Bezos said at a tech conference in Paris in June.
As AI helps businesses automate routine work and lower the cost of creating new products and services, companies are likely to pursue opportunities that were previously uneconomical, he argues. That will increase—not reduce—the need for human workers.
Yet, Amazon — as well as Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META), Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) and Block (NYSE:XYZ) — are restructuring and redirecting resources toward AI while also cutting thousands of jobs.
Bezos maintains that AI will ultimately help people feel less constrained and remove barriers to success.
Wood, citing findings from payroll software provider Ramp, made a similar claim: Companies adopting AI are adding employees faster than their peers. Demographic trends—including retiring baby boomers and tighter immigration—are shrinking the available labor force, she added.
As a result, businesses will be competing for workers even as AI adoption accelerates, she said.
The AI Job Apocalypse Hasn’t Arrived—Yet
Entry-level roles face the greatest disruption, Woods said. Still, she advised younger workers to use AI as a tool to build businesses, solve problems and create new opportunities rather than compete with the technology.
So far, job losses due to AI adoption have fallen short of expectations, according to a McKinsey survey. Last week, the firm reported that 32% of survey respondents in 2025 anticipated headcount reductions due to AI, yet only 14 percent reported workforce reductions a year later.
Two-thirds of respondents in 2026 reported little or no AI-related change in their organizations’ total employment during the previous year. However, 39% said they expect AI to reduce headcount at their organizations over the next year.
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