According to a new IMF analysis, artificial intelligence will affect nearly 40% of all jobs.
Kristalina Georgieva, managing director of the IMF, says that “in most scenarios, AI will likely worsen overall inequality”.
Ms Georgieva goes on to say that policymakers should address the “troubling trend” to “prevent technology from further stoking social tensions”.
The proliferation of AI has brought its benefits and risks to the forefront.
According to the IMF, AI is likely to affect a larger proportion of jobs in advanced economies, estimated to be around 60%. In half of these cases, workers can expect to benefit from AI integration, which will increase their productivity.
In other cases, AI will be able to perform important tasks that are currently performed by humans. This could reduce demand for labour, lowering wages and possibly eliminating jobs.
Meanwhile, the IMF predicts that the technology will only affect 26% of jobs in low-income countries.
It echoes a Goldman Sachs report from 2023, which estimated that AI could replace the equivalent of 300 million full-time jobs – but that there may also be new jobs created as productivity increases.
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Meanwhile, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak stated in November that people should not be concerned about the impact of artificial intelligence on jobs because education reforms would improve skills.
She noted that “many of these countries don’t have the infrastructure or skilled workforces to harness the benefits of AI, raising the risk that over time the technology could worsen inequality among nations” .
In general, higher-income and younger workers may see a disproportionate increase in pay after implementing AI.
The IMF believes that lower-income and older workers may fall behind.
“It is crucial for countries to establish comprehensive social safety nets and offer retraining programmes for vulnerable workers,” she said. “In doing so, we can make the AI transition more inclusive, protecting livelihoods and curbing inequality.”
The IMF analysis comes as global business and political leaders gather for the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
Following the popularity of applications such as ChatGPT, AI has become a hot topic of discussion.
The technology is being increasingly regulated around the world. Last month, European Union officials reached a provisional agreement on the world’s first comprehensive laws governing the use of AI.
The European Parliament will vote on the AI Act proposals early this year, but any legislation will not become effective until at least 2025.
The US, the UK, and China have yet to release their own AI guidelines.
