Artificial intelligence could give people more flexibility in how they work and earn a living, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has said. Productivity gains driven by AI could allow some people to support their families while working only three days a week, Bezos told Fox News’ Special Report host Bret Baier.
He said improvements in productivity could give workers more choices, including the option to work fewer days while earning enough to support their households.
“Some people will also decide, you know what? I can support my family by working three days a week. That’s what productivity in the economy means,” Bezos said.
Bezos did not explain exactly how this would happen, but said it supported his view that AI could create labour shortages rather than widespread job losses.
“It’s going to actually be difficult to hire people because the productivity in the economy is going to make it so that if people don’t want to work two jobs, they won’t have to,” he added.
During the interview, Baier raised Amazon’s recent reduction of around 30,000 corporate jobs. Bezos said Amazon was in a “very special position” because it had significantly expanded its workforce during the COVID-19 pandemic. He acknowledged concerns about AI replacing workers but said he disagreed with predictions of widespread job losses.
At Prometheus, the AI startup he co-founded and co-leads, Bezos said the aim is to develop an “artificial general engineer” that can help people turn their ideas into physical products. “We’re going to make the tools so easy to use that anyone will be able to be an engineer,” he added.
He further predicted that AI could boost productivity across the economy by double-digit percentages. When asked whether the industry was in an investment bubble, he said it was “very hard to know”. However, he argued that useful technologies continue to have an impact even when investors lose money.
Bezos also said the US must win the race against China to send humans to the Moon, adding that he believes an American landing is possible in 2028.
