New Delhi: Artificial Intelligence (AI) is set to profoundly reshape global labour markets by the end of the decade, with outcomes ranging from productivity booms to widespread job displacement, according to a new World Economic Forum (WEF) white paper released this month.
In Four Futures for Jobs in the New Economy: AI and Talent in 2030, the Forum outlines four plausible scenarios showing how AI advancement and workforce readiness could interact to transform jobs, value chains and economic growth. The report draws insights from the Forum’s Chief Strategy Officers Community and global foresight experts.
Survey data cited in the paper highlights deep uncertainty among business leaders. Around 54 per cent of executives globally expect AI to displace existing jobs, while only 24 per cent believe it will create new ones. Nearly 45 per cent anticipate rising profit margins from AI adoption, but just 12 per cent expect higher wages, suggesting productivity gains may not translate evenly into increased pay for workers.
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The Forum stresses that technology alone will not determine the future of work. “The future of workplaces and value chains will not be defined by technology alone. Human capital strategies and investments prioritised today will determine how well societies and individual businesses can adapt to and lead in the new economy,” the report says.
The four scenarios range from Supercharged Progress, where rapid AI breakthroughs fuel innovation and new occupations, to The Age of Displacement, in which automation outpaces reskilling efforts, leading to rising unemployment and social instability. Two other futures envision slower or more uneven progress: the Co-Pilot Economy, where AI primarily augments human work, and Stalled Progress, marked by skills shortages, uneven productivity gains and widening inequality.
Across all scenarios, the report emphasises foresight as a strategic tool rather than a prediction exercise. The white paper is part of the World Economic Forum’s Scenarios for the Global Economy Dialogue Series, which aims to help decision-makers navigate complex global transitions through structured scenario analysis and cross-industry dialogue.
As AI moves rapidly from experimentation to integration, the Forum concludes that choices made by businesses and policymakers in the coming years will play a decisive role in determining whether AI becomes a driver of shared prosperity or not.
