International Monetary Fund Director Kristalina Georgieva recently said that artificial intelligence (AI) is hitting the labor market “like a tsunami” and is poised to dramatically change it. She warned that over the next two years, AI could impact 60 percent of jobs in developed countries and 40 percent of jobs worldwide.
Georgieva emphasized the importance of preparing for these changes. She said, “There’s very little time to get people ready and businesses ready.”
AI can increase our production and make things more efficient, but it can also increase misinformation and widen income inequality. She emphasized the need for careful management to get the most out of AI.
“If managed well, it could significantly increase productivity, but it could also lead to more misinformation and, of course, even greater social inequality,” Georgieva added.
The statement comes as major technology companies focus on new and more powerful versions of their AI models. OpenAI recently announced its new GPT-4o model, which is free to all users. With the GPT-4o update, chatbots are now more conversational and almost completely human-like. You can also see and respond to what you’re seeing in real time.
Google is announcing many new AI features today at I/O 2024, including new features in Android 15 and more.
Current state of the world economy
Despite challenges such as the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine, the global economy is performing better than expected. Georgieva said there is currently no global recession and last year’s fears that the economy would go downhill did not materialize. Inflation, or the rate of price increase, is beginning to slow in many regions.
Georgieva believes the global economy will continue to face challenges, particularly from climate change. She believes in developing strong strategies to address these current and future issues.
