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The robots coming for our jobs will also help fire us

By Beth Kowitt

07 Feb 2023 · 3 min read

Editor's Note

AI already props up corporate hiring processes. Now, it could help determine layoffs too. Bloomberg columnist Beth Kowitt questions whether it's a good idea to remove the human from human resources.

For those who take a sadistic pleasure in looking for evidence that we are creeping closer to a dystopian future where humans are ruled by their robot overloads, consider this possible nightmare scenario: artificial intelligence is not only coming for your job but will have a hand in laying you off, too.

AI has already infiltrated multiple parts of the human resources process, from hiring to onboarding to training to evaluating. It's not a huge stretch to think that in an efficiency-obsessed sector like technology, tools designed to streamline decision-making are now making their way into layoffs. The conditions here are ripe for it: Tech's nearly 42,000 job cuts last month were the second highest on record for the sector, according to data from outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

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