Microsoft AI Chief: White-Collar Work Automated in 18 Months

The CEO of Microsoft AI, Mustafa Suleyman, predicts that within 18 months, AI will achieve human-level performance on most professional tasks. This means many white-collar jobs, including accounting, legal, marketing, and project management, could see full automation. Suleyman points to the rapid growth in computational power as a key factor. He believes AI models will soon code better than most human coders. Other AI leaders, like Matt Shumer, echo this concern, comparing the potential disruption to the start of the pandemic. However, the actual impact of AI on professional jobs has been mixed so far. While some professionals are experimenting with AI for specific tasks, these efforts have shown only marginal productivity improvements. They do not yet signal widespread job displacement. In some cases, AI has even made workers less productive. This information is important for anyone in a white-collar profession.