Jamie Dimon Warns A.I. May Disrupt Workers Faster Than Society Can Adapt

JPMorgan Chase is leading the pack among financial institutions embracing A.I. to boost productivity. Even so, CEO Jamie Dimon worries the technology’s rapid adoption will outpace the labor market’s ability to adjust. “I do think it may go too fast for society,” said Dimon while speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, today (Jan. 21). “That’s where governments and business need collaborative ways to step in together and come up with ways to retrain people.”

There’s no point in pretending A.I. won’t radically reshape industries, Dimon added, noting that JPMorgan alone is incorporating the technology across roughly 500 use cases. But productivity gains come with trade-offs, including job losses.

“It is what it is,” said Dimon. “You can hope for the world you want, but you’re going to get the world you got.”

The CEO urged companies not to “put your head in the sand,” but to embrace A.I. JPMorgan is already adopting this strategy. The bank is using the technology in areas such as risk, fraud, marketing, customer service and idea generation, and expects it to lead to custom assistants for employees, automated agents for internal processes, and concierge tools for clients.

As A.I. spreads across the financial sector, job cuts are likely to follow. JPMorgan will likely have “fewer employees” in five years, said Dimon, echoing warnings from other Wall Street leaders. Goldman Sachs, for example, told staff last fall that A.I.-driven efficiency gains would constrain headcount, while Citigroup earlier this month said some roles would be replaced by the technology.

Dimon called on policymakers to act now to stabilize society before A.I.’s labor impact becomes fully apparent. Governments should roll out programs to “retrain people, relocate people, income-assist people,” he said, pointing to Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) as a model—though in a more effective form. “We need to be prepared to have something that works this time.”

Without such measures, the consequences could be severe. Dimon pointed to the U.S. trucking industry as an example. “Should you do it all at once, if 2 million people go from driving a truck and making $150,000 a year to a next job that might be $25,000?” he asked. “No. You’ll have civil unrest.”

Self-driving trucks may ultimately save lives, cut emissions and reduce costs, Dimon acknowledged. But those kinds of disruptions need to be rolled out gradually, with governments incentivizing companies to slow the pace and support displaced workers with training and financial assistance. He added that JPMorgan would be willing to accept a slower rollout of A.I. if necessary.

“We would agree, if we have to do that to save society,” said Dimon. “We’re not going to kill all of our employees tomorrow because of A.I.”