According to the International Monetary Fund, the development of artificial intelligence poses a number of threats to humanity. The most pressing among them are job cuts and rising income inequality.
IMF analysts warn that AI is a menace to the global labor market. Looking ahead, chatbots may replace the human workforce. Dramatic changes will affect up to 40% of global employment. Countries with high per capita GDP figures are at greater risk from the technology. Advanced economies could witness nearly 60% of jobs impacted by AI. The exposure to AI in emerging markets stands at 40% and about 26% in low-income states.
Against this background, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva expressed the need to address this "troubling trend" to reduce the threat of stoking social tensions. "We are on the brink of a technological revolution that could jumpstart productivity, boost global growth, and raise incomes around the world," she said. "Yet it could also replace jobs and deepen inequality," the head of the agency added.
Also, the IMF studied the potential impact of AI on income inequality in a number of countries. Research shows that employees who have access to the new technology are more likely to see an increase in their productivity and wages. The rest of the workers will come off worse, especially if they fall far behind in terms of expertise and earnings.
In 2023, every fifth large company reportedly used generative artificial intelligence to bolster performance and streamline workflows. According to estimates, 12% of firms have defined the priority tasks needed to implement this cutting-edge technology, while 27% are still experimenting with generative AI. At the same time, all companies using this innovation have already tried OpenAI solutions (GPT-4 or GPT-3.5).