AI could replace millions of jobs, warns “Godfather of AI”

Artificial intelligence (AI) technology is often said to have the potential to eliminate a large number of jobs.

According to Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, AI could affect almost every profession and may lead to shorter working hours. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates believes that, gradually, humans may become unnecessary for many tasks.

Elon Musk has predicted that within the next two decades, most people may no longer need to go to work. Computer scientist Geoffrey Hinton is widely known as the “Godfather of AI.” He won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2024 for his work on artificial intelligence.

Geoffrey Hinton who is associated with the University of Toronto in Canada has warned about the potential negative impact of AI on employment. Speaking at Georgetown University, he said he believes AI could lead to widespread unemployment with millions of people potentially losing their jobs.

He explained that companies are investing heavily in AI infrastructure including data centers and chips to improve automation.

According to Hinton, companies will seek returns on these investments by selling AI systems capable of performing tasks currently carried out by human workers at a lower cost. He said that the desire for greater profits could ultimately lead AI tools to replace human employees.

However, Hinton acknowledged that AI technology would also create new employment opportunities. Nevertheless, he believes the number of new jobs may not be sufficient to replace all the jobs that could be lost. He also admitted that it is extremely difficult to predict the long-term effects of AI technology.

Hinton has previously issued warnings about the risks associated with AI. At one point, he estimated that there was a 10% to 20% chance that AI could eventually contribute to the destruction of humanity. He stressed that it is important to discuss the potential dangers of AI.

Hinton acknowledged that the uncertainty surrounding AI can be troubling because no one knows exactly what the future holds. He said that if someone asks what AI technology will look like in the next 10 years, no one can accurately predict it.

Earlier, in an August 2025 podcast appearance, Hinton said that AI is learning things in ways that humans do not fully understand and that there may be no reliable way to simply switch it off.

Hinton’s research helped lay the foundations of machine learning, the technology that enables computers to replicate aspects of human intelligence. However, in recent years, he has been campaigning for AI to be developed and used safely.

In 2023, Hinton left his position at Google saying that bad actors could potentially use the technology to harm other people.

In a recent interview, when asked about the pace of AI development, he said that most experts in the field currently believe that eventually possibly within the next 20 years, humans could develop AI systems that are more intelligent than humans.

He described this as a frightening prospect, comparing current AI technology to a three-year-old child, while noting that children grow up very quickly.

According to Hinton, the impact of AI on the world could be similar to that of the Industrial Revolution. He explained that the Industrial Revolution effectively halted the need for humans to develop greater physical strength because people began relying on increasingly powerful machines.

He believes humanity is now doing something similar with human intelligence potentially creating technology that could surpass human intellectual capabilities.

When asked what life might look like 10 or 20 years from now, Hinton said that it would largely depend on how political systems respond to and manage the technology.

In his view, AI could have remarkable benefits in the medical field and could improve the efficiency of almost every industry. However, he stressed that society needs to be much more cautious about the rapid development of AI technology.