IBM will replace 8,000 jobs with AI in the next 3 years says CEO
We all know that many jobs can be automated in time, but few people are prepared for when it happens to them ...
Key takeaways
- Krishna said that his company hired 7,000 people in the first quarter.
- In January, IBM announced 3,900 layoffs after it missed its annual cash target.
- In March, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said in an interview that AI, if done right, will eliminate up to 80% of jobs.
Cite or link to this article
Griffin, M. (2023) 'IBM will replace 8,000 jobs with AI in the next 3 years says CEO', 311 Institute, 13 July. Available at: https://www.311institute.com/ibm-will-replace-8000-jobs-with-ai-in-the-next-3-years-says-ceo/ (Accessed: 1 October 2026).
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is coming to automate jobs they say. And they’re right – at least when it comes to IBM anyway after the company said they will stop hiring humans for roles that can be replaced by (AI in the next few years, CEO Arvind Krishna said in an interview with Bloomberg.
He said that out of the 26,000 IBM workers involved in backend operations 30% can be replaced by AI and automation in the next five years. IBM’s total workforce is reportedly close to 300,000.
Krishna said that the company has already paused or slowed new hiring in many back end functions such as human resources. However, the hiring for customer-facing operations is still going on. Krishna said that his company hired 7,000 people in the first quarter.
In January, IBM announced 3,900 layoffs after it missed its annual cash target. The layoff impacted employees in its subsidiary Kyndryl and AI unit Watson Health.
Several big tech firms have announced mass layoffs in the last 12 months due to the economic downturn which has impacted revenue growth. Meta has announced two rounds of layoff involving over 20,000 workers, while Google and Microsoft have announced 12,000 and 10,000 jobs cuts respectively.
Many industry executives in the past have expressed concerns over the impact of AI on jobs. In March, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said in an interview that AI, if done right, will eliminate up to 80% of jobs.
Though many companies have replaced many of the repetitive jobs with automation already they are now beginning to consider AI as an alternative to even more complex human driven jobs. According to a February report by Gartner, by 2025, 30% of all marketing messages from large organisations will be synthetically generated as compared to 2% in 2022.
The shift can be attributed to the recent breakthrough in AI brought on by generative AI models such as GPT-4 and Google’s Language Model for Dialogue Applications (LaMDA). Many big firms have already announced plans to leverage them to improve their services and products.
Krishna took charge of IBM in April 2020. Under his leadership, the US-based company with operations in over 170 countries, has stepped up its focus on new technologies such as hybrid cloud, AI, quantum computing, and Blockchain, and there’s also been a shift towards products over consultancy.
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We all know that many jobs can be automated in time, but few people are prepared for when it happens to them ...
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Matthew Griffin Founder, 311 Institute
Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath."
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Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath." 15-time best selling author of the "Codex of the Future" series, Matthew is the Founder and Futurist in Chief of the 311 Institute, a global Futures and Deep Futures advisory firm working with royal households, world leaders, G7, G20, and G77 governments, NGOs, and multi-national mid and mega cap firms to help them explore, shape, and lead the next 50 years of business and society.
An award-winning YouTube creator with over a million followers, with an unrivalled global reach and impact, Matthew is a highly sought-after international keynote speaker, lecturer, and mentor who collaborates with global leaders through the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to shape pivotal initiatives such as the UN’s AI for Humanity program, the United Nations Conference of the Parties (UN COP), and the World Economic Forum in Davos.
As the former Global Head of Cloud, National Security, and Enterprise Sales for companies including Atos, Dell-EMC, and IBM, Matthew has a proven track record of building multi-billion dollar business units and turning failing divisions into market leaders. His ability to identify, analyse, and communicate the implications of hundreds of emerging technologies and trends is unparalleled, and his insights are trusted by many of the world’s most respected organisations, including ABB, Accenture, Adidas, AON, ARM, BCG, Centrica, Citi, Coca-Cola, Dentons, Deloitte, Dow Jones, EY, Google, KPMG, Lego, Legal & General, LinkedIn, Microsoft, PepsiCo, Qualcomm, RWE, Samsung, Siemens AG and Siemens Energy, T-Mobile, UBS, VISA, Walmart, Workday, Worldpay and many others.
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Source: first published by the 311 Institute on 13 July 2023. Cite as: Griffin, M. (2023). IBM will replace 8,000 jobs with AI in the next 3 years says CEO. 311 Institute. https://www.311institute.com/ibm-will-replace-8000-jobs-with-ai-in-the-next-3-years-says-ceo/
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