a16z Refutes 'AI Job Apocalypse': New Technologies Always Create New Jobs
a16z stated that since 1940, most of the new jobs in the U.S. did not exist at that time, emphasizing that there is no fixed 'lump of labor'.
a16z partner David George debunked the myth that 'AI will cause mass unemployment', stating that every technological revolution in history has repeatedly created entirely new professions rather than simply replacing old positions.
Currently, AI is driving a transformation in employment structure, giving rise to numerous new positions that previously did not exist, such as AI engineering, prompt optimization, data labeling, and agent training.
Source: Public Information
ABAB AI Insight
a16z is optimistic about the amplifying effect of AI on productivity in the long term, having repeatedly cited historical data in reports to refute the narrative of technological unemployment. David George's analysis continues this classic viewpoint: after agricultural mechanization, the proportion of farmers significantly decreased, but total employment increased; the internet era created numerous new professions such as developers, content creators, and platform operators.
In terms of capital flow, top funds like a16z are shifting capital from traditional labor-intensive industries to AI infrastructure, application tools, and new vocational training. By investing in companies like OpenAI and Anthropic, they indirectly promote employment redistribution while helping displaced workers transition to high-productivity new fields.
Similar to how the industrial revolution replaced hand weavers with mechanical engineers and factory managers, and how the internet replaced some retail jobs but birthed e-commerce, logistics, and data analysts, AI is currently in the early stages of transitioning from 'replacing old jobs' to 'creating a new job ecosystem'.
Essentially, this is a form of technological substitution: AI automates repetitive tasks, freeing human labor from low-value tasks to focus on creative, supervisory, and new scenario development work, transforming the capital mindset from fixed labor quantity to a dynamic employment expansion mechanism. Historically, every breakthrough in general technology has ultimately expanded rather than contracted the total size of the labor market.
ABAB News · Cognitive Law
Every technological revolution turns 'unemployment' into 'the birth of new professions'.
The total amount of labor is not a fixed pie, but a cake that can be continuously expanded by technology.
Those who fear AI taking jobs will ultimately be left behind by those who embrace AI to create new jobs.