Are white-collar jobs at risk from AI? Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei certainly thinks so

• Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei claims major white-collar layoffs are on the horizon
• Unemployment could spike to 20%
• Anthropic develops AI models designed to do tasks traditionally done by humans

The CEO of AI firm Anthropic, creators of ChatGPT rival ‘Claude’, has warned the US Government about the possible ‘mass elimination’ of entry-level jobs across law, technology, finance, and other white-collar fields.

Dario Amodei predicted up to half of all entry-level white-collar jobs could be taken by AI, leading to unemployment of as much as 20% in the next one to five years.

Amodei warned most workers are “unaware” that this job apocalypse is imminent; "It sounds crazy, and people just don't believe it", adding AI has the potential to affect society in positive and negative ways; "Cancer is cured, the economy grows at 10% a year, the budget is balanced — and 20% of people don't have jobs."

Shifting sands

It’s worth noting Anthropic is one of the organisations leading the charge in developing technology designed to replace humans.

The warnings that Amodei and others share about the potential impact on unemployment and short-term economic turmoil come with no mitigation plan; "We, as the producers of this technology, have a duty and an obligation to be honest about what is coming."

Axios outlines that Steve Bannon, long time advisor to President Trump and influential media personality, also envisions a scenario in which entry level positions are “eviscerated,” which correlates with the almost 2% rise in tech sector layoffs seen thanks to AI already in 2025.

"I don't think anyone is taking into consideration how administrative, managerial and tech jobs for people under 30 — entry-level jobs that are so important in your 20s — are going to be eviscerated."

This isn’t necessarily the only outcome long term though, with over 55% of companies in the UK who replaced workers with AI ultimately coming to regret their decision, indicating that perhaps the technology isn’t as potent its marketing suggests.

Via Axios

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