4 in 10 Americans think generative AI will reduce jobs: Report

Nearly four in 10 Americans in a new analysis believe generative artificial intelligence (AI) could dimmish the number of available jobs as the technology advances.  

The study, published Wednesday by the New York Fed’s Liberty Street Economics blog, found relatively few people have used generative AI models, though those who have used them have a more negative prediction for their effect on jobs and future inequality.  

Generative AI is a type of AI technology that can create original text, images and other content based on the data it was trained on. Of those surveyed, 31 percent used a generative AI tool at some point. These users were more likely to be younger, male and college-educated, Liberty Street Economics said.  

Forty-three percent of all survey respondents said they thought the generative AI tools would reduce jobs. Meanwhile, half of those who used the tools said they might assist in acquiring useful skills to keep their jobs or get new ones, while only 23 percent of those who had not used the tools said the same.   

Users of generative AI tools were more mixed when it came to how such tools impact one’s productivity at work, analysts found.  

More than half (60 percent) of generative AI users said it had no impact on their productivity at work, while 35 percent said it increased their job productivity, according to the survey. About 66 percent of generative AI users used it to gather information and advice, while 48 percent used it for entertainment and 39 percent used it for work.   

The study is the latest analysis to suggest Americans have concerns, at least to some extent, about AI’s use expanding across various industries. The introduction of AI into workplaces is bringing the potential for altered workflows and hours for employees.   

Several studies show introducing language-based AI software in the workplace benefits less skilled workers more than highly skilled ones, prompting concerns from economists and labor unions that jobs could be outsourced to lower-paid regions of the globe. 

A YouGov poll released in late August found Americans are split over whether they believe AI will decrease the number of available jobs in the future.  

The Liberty Street Economics analysis was conducted using answers to supplemental questions featured in the February 2024 Survey of Consumer Expectations (SCE).

According to the New York Fed, the SCE is a “nationally representative, internet-based survey of a rotating panel of about 1,300 household heads.” The targeted responding sample size is about 3,000 completed questionnaires each month from household heads.