IBM’s CEO, Arvind Krishna, has announced a halt in hiring due to possible automation of jobs by artificial intelligence. As reported in an interview with Bloomberg, the company plans to replace approximately 7,800 positions with AI-driven roles over the coming years.
This comes amid fears regarding the effects of AI on employment. IBM predicts that up to 30% of non-customer-facing jobs can be automated within five years, leading to reductions in staff either due to layoffs or not hiring replacements as employees leave.
Back in January, as informed by The New York Times, IBM disclosed a plan to cut 3,800 jobs. This number represents almost half of the total 7,800 roles IBM now says will be taken over by AI.
Layoffs have been rampant in the tech industry this year, affecting numerous leading businesses such as Meta, Amazon, Twitter, and Microsoft. There are also plans by Roku, Disney, and Electronic Arts (EA) to implement job cuts in 2023.
PCMag has sought comment from IBM regarding the job titles most expected to be impacted, as well as how the tech giant plans to evaluate AI “employees'” performance compared to their human predecessors. The story will be updated upon receiving a response from the company.
There have long been warnings from scientists and researchers intimately familiar with AI technology about the latter’s potential to supplant human jobs. The introduction of ChatGPT in November 2022 seems to have amplified these concerns.
A report from the White House released in December addressed the influence of AI on the workforce. It stated that the displacement of workers in certain fields by AI—due to its automation capabilities or the workers’ lack of necessary skills for their current roles—is unavoidable.
[sourcelink link=”https://www.reuters.com/technology/ibm-pause-hiring-plans-replace-7800-jobs-with-ai-bloomberg-news-2023-05-01/”]
