IBM said it would triple entry-level hiring this year and PwC said it would not automate many basic tasks, bucking predictions that AI will wipe out junior white-collar jobs.
The prevailing assumption is that AI will automate most professional tasks: Microsoft’s AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman recently said that could happen within 18 months. The impact is expected to hit the bottom of the employment pyramid hardest, with research finding big drops in hiring among 22- to 25-year-olds in tech and customer service, The Economist reported.
Still, some major employers either believe AI tools will make junior staff more productive, as is the case with IBM, or that challenging early-career workers was necessary to maintain a talent pipeline, as PwC argues.