Jeff Bezos has predicted that artificial intelligence could usher in a three-day workweek, with rising productivity allowing some families to rely on a single income.
The Amazon founder said people may eventually be able to support their households while working fewer days, while others could choose not to work at all.
“Some people will decide, I can support my family working three days a week. That’s what productivity in the economy means,” Mr Bezos told Fox News this week.
He said greater wealth and resources generated by AI could also lead to a shortage of workers, as more households decide that both adults do not need to be employed.
“You’re not going to need to have a two-earner household. If you want it, fine. If you don’t want to have it, one of the people might drop out,” he said.
Mr Bezos added: “It’s going to be difficult to hire people, because the productivity in the economy will make it so that [if] people don’t want to work two jobs, they won’t have to.”
Amazon and the uncertain investment outlook
Although Mr Bezos is optimistic about AI’s long-term impact, he said investors faced difficulty distinguishing successful projects from those unlikely to deliver results.
Asked whether the current AI boom was a bubble, he said it was “hard to know”, arguing that the technology itself was genuine even if funding was reaching both strong and weak ideas.
“What I do know is the technology is real. I think this is a good thing for society,” he said. “It’s tricky for investors. Every experiment gets funded—the good ideas and the bad ideas.”
Amazon is planning to spend more than $200 billion on capital expenditure this year, largely on data centres. The company has also cut about 30,000 corporate roles since late last year, highlighting the uncertainty facing workers as businesses pursue greater productivity.
Mr Bezos could also benefit from the expansion of AI through Blue Origin, his space exploration company. The business has ambitions to build data centres in space and expand human activity to the Moon and beyond.
Blue Origin’s latest funding round reportedly raised $10 billion and valued the company at $140 billion, while Mr Bezos’s net worth rose to $365 billion.
Business leaders divided over the future of work
Other prominent executives have also suggested that AI could reduce the working week, although their predictions differ.
Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang has said the technology will “probably” bring about a four-day week, while JPMorgan Chase boss Jamie Dimon has predicted that employees could eventually work three and a half days a week.
Bill Gates has suggested the working week could shrink to two days. Elon Musk has gone further, saying AI and robotics could eventually make employment optional and create an era of “universal high income”.
“In less than 20 years—but maybe even as little as 10 or 15 years—the advancements in AI and robotics will bring us to the point where working is optional,” Mr Musk said late last year.
