Goldman Sachs CEO Dismisses AI "Job Doomsday Theory": AI Will Boost Productivity and Create New Jobs

May 26 — Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon wrote in a New York Times op-ed that fears AI will trigger a "mass unemployment crisis" are overblown, arguing the U.S. economy will continue generating new jobs amid technological shifts just as it did during past industrial revolutions and the internet era. Solomon noted Goldman Sachs projects AI or automation will impact roughly 25% of existing job tasks over the next 10 years, with white-collar sectors including banking, accounting, and law facing significant disruption. A Stanford study found entry-level job postings in highly automated fields like software engineering and customer service have fallen by 16%. Still, he highlighted AI is also driving new labor demand: U.S. data center construction has created more than 200,000 construction jobs since 2022. Goldman Sachs itself may cut some compliance and account-opening roles while hiring additional client-facing positions in banking, trading, and asset management. Solomon emphasized AI is far more likely to boost productivity than directly eliminate 25% of jobs. “Technological progress and cultural change don’t move in lockstep; being replaceable doesn’t mean you will be replaced,” he said. He also called on governments and businesses to collaborate on large-scale vocational training to address the structural shifts in the job market brought by AI.