White House Says AI Has Not Yet Taken Jobs, Drawing a Line as Big Tech Cuts Staff

[Financial News New York = Reporter Lee Byung-chul]As concerns grow that artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly reshaping the U.S. labor market, the White House said there is still no evidence that AI is actually causing job losses. The United States government is also monitoring the possible impact of AI on future employment and is operating a separate task force (TF).
Kevin Allen Hassett, director of the White House National Economic Council (NEC), said in an interview with Consumer News and Business Channel (CNBC) on the 11th (local time), "There is no sign in the current data that anyone is losing a job because of AI."
Hassett said, "We are studying the future of AI and what it means for the labor market," adding, "We are operating a large task force for that purpose."
The remarks came as large-scale layoffs have recently swept through the U.S. tech industry. Major Big Tech companies such as Amazon.com, Inc., Meta Platforms and Oracle Corporation have all moved to cut jobs. Some companies have publicly said that AI adoption has enabled automation and higher productivity, allowing them to operate with fewer workers.
Financial Technology (FinTech) company Block announced in February that it would lay off about 4,000 employees. That would reduce its workforce by nearly half.
In a message to employees at the time, Amrita Ahuja, Block's Chief Financial Officer (CFO), said, "We decided to change how we operate at a time of rapid growth." She added, "We see an opportunity to use AI to automate more work and move faster as a leaner organization centered on a smaller number of outstanding people."
Market watchers say AI has not yet led to mass unemployment in the statistics, but it is already changing companies' hiring strategies and organizational structures. In particular, as AI-driven automation spreads quickly in repetitive and office-based work, expectations are growing that it could eventually reshape the structure of the U.S. labor market itself.
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pride@fnnews.com Reporter Lee Byung-chul Reporter