CNBC Exclusive | Jeff Bezos rejects AI job-loss fears, says productivity gains will create more opportunities
Speaking in an exclusive interview with CNBC, Bezos said fears of widespread job destruction are misplaced and argued that history shows technological breakthroughs tend to improve living standards and create new forms of economic activity.
“I think we’re actually going to have labour scarcity,” Bezos said when asked about concerns that AI could displace workers across industries.
Bezos acknowledged that many people have become pessimistic about the impact of AI on employment, but said he disagrees with that assessment.
“I know why people are pessimistic. They’re pessimistic because a lot of smart people are telling them to be pessimistic. But those people are wrong,” he said.
According to Bezos, major productivity gains from AI could allow people to achieve higher standards of living while working fewer hours, rather than forcing them out of the workforce altogether. He suggested that some households may choose to work less if rising productivity makes goods and services more affordable.
“When productivity rises that much, the basket of goods people can afford becomes larger relative to the amount they need to work,” he said.
Bezos compared AI to transformative inventions that have shaped economic progress over centuries, from the plough and steam engine to solar cells and penicillin. In his view, such innovations eventually spread throughout society and benefit far more people than they initially affect.
“The inventions themselves spread throughout society and improve life,” he said.
His comments come as investors continue to pour billions of dollars into artificial intelligence companies amid growing debate over how the technology will reshape labour markets. Many economists and business leaders have warned that AI could automate a significant number of white-collar jobs, particularly in administrative and knowledge-based professions.
Vik Bajaj, Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Prometheus, argued that innovation itself is one of the biggest drivers of employment creation.
“What creates jobs? Companies occasionally create jobs, but what really creates jobs is invention,” Bajaj said.
He argued that faster innovation leads to the creation of new products, industries and businesses, generating demand for workers in the process.
The argument is central to the vision behind Prometheus, which is raising a $12 billion Series B funding round that values the company at roughly $41 billion. The startup has remained largely quiet publicly, but its ambitions are expansive. It aims to use AI to accelerate engineering and manufacturing across what its founders describe as the physical economy, including industries such as semiconductors, aerospace, batteries and solar manufacturing.
Prometheus is developing AI tools intended to help engineers design, test and manufacture complex products more quickly. Bezos and Bajaj argue that shortening development cycles could unlock a new wave of innovation across industrial sectors.
The founders frequently point to industries such as aviation as examples of what could change. Today, developing a new generation of jet engines can take thousands of engineers and more than a decade. Prometheus believes AI can help reduce those timelines significantly by improving how products are designed, simulated and manufactured.
Bajaj said faster invention would ultimately create more opportunities rather than fewer.
Also Read | Why Jeff Bezos thinks the next AI revolution will happen in factories, not offices
“We will create more engineers. We will have more jobs in engineering and manufacturing as a result of inventing more,” he said.
The founders acknowledge that the technology remains in its early stages and that significant technical challenges remain. Prometheus currently employs around 150 people across London and Zurich and continues to invest heavily in research, data and computing infrastructure.
Still, Bezos remains convinced that the long-term impact of AI will be to expand economic opportunity rather than reduce it. In his view, the technology’s greatest contribution may not be replacing human workers, but helping people invent more, build more and create entirely new industries that do not yet exist.