Ro Khanna

On Sunday, Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) called for a major federal jobs program and expanded social protections as artificial intelligence threatened to reshape the U.S. labor market.

AI Job Displacement Response Proposal

In a post on X, the California Democrat said, "The AI revolution must work for all of us, not just tech lords."

He proposed a federal employment initiative called "Work for America" that would hire 1 million Americans.

Khanna also linked job displacement concerns to health care policy, suggesting expanded coverage through Medicare for All if workers lose employment due to automation.

He framed his approach as an "AI for the People" agenda aimed at ensuring technology benefits are widely shared.

His comments came after AI policy writer Jasmine Sun shared concerns from conversations with industry insiders, researchers and economists.

"Most people I know in AI think the median person is screwed, and they have no idea what to do about it," she wrote, adding that the industry is "raising the alarm, but can't change course."

AI Job Disruption

He pointed to rising workloads for lawyers handling AI-generated documents and similar pressures in other industries.

Silicon Valley investor Vinod Khosla took a far more extreme view, predicting AI and robotics could perform about 80% of jobs by 2030.

He said the shift could dramatically lower costs, increase productivity, and make traditional employment far less necessary in the future.

In contrast, Perplexity AI CEO Aravind Srinivas said AI-driven layoffs should be seen as an opportunity rather than a threat.

He argued that workers could use AI tools to leave unfulfilling jobs and start new ventures, calling disruption a path to new business creation despite warnings from other executives about potential mass unemployment.

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

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