‘Stop sticking your heads in the sand’: JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon warns AI will eliminate jobs

Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, cautioned that artificial intelligence will inevitably eliminate jobs, even as it promises long-term gains for productivity and living standards. Speaking in a recent interview with Fox News, the head of America’s largest bank said society must prepare for workforce disruption by equipping people with skills that machines cannot easily replicate. 

While Dimon struck an optimistic note on AI’s potential to improve lives over time, he was blunt about the transition ahead. “It will eliminate jobs,” he said, adding that the pace of change could prove challenging if societies fail to adapt quickly enough. 

‘Great stuff for mankind’ 

Dimon compared the rise of AI to past technological breakthroughs such as tractors, fertilisers and vaccines — innovations that ultimately transformed economies and improved quality of life. In the near term, however, he acknowledged that job losses are unavoidable. 

“For the most part, AI is going to do great stuff for mankind,” Dimon said. “Maybe one day we’ll be working less hard but having wonderful lives.” That future, he suggested, will not arrive before significant disruption, even though he does not expect AI to cause dramatic job losses as early as next year. 

He also dismissed the idea that recent hiring caution among companies is being driven by AI, stressing that broader economic factors are at play for now. 

As automation advances, Dimon urged workers to focus on developing capabilities that go beyond technical know-how. Critical thinking, emotional intelligence, creativity and clear communication, he said, will become increasingly valuable in an AI-driven economy. 

“People should stop sticking their heads in the sand,” Dimon warned, arguing that job displacement does not mean people will not find other work — but only if they are prepared to adapt. If change happens too quickly, he cautioned, societies may struggle to retrain and absorb displaced workers at scale. 

A shorter workweek? 

This is not the first time the JPMorgan Chase CEO has sounded the alarm on AI’s impact. In November 2025, Dimon predicted that artificial intelligence could eventually allow people in developed economies to work far fewer hours — perhaps just three and a half days a week — within the next 20 to 40 years. 

“My guess is the developed world will be working three and a half days a week in 20, 30, or 40 years,” he said at the America Business Forum in Miami, envisioning a future where AI agents assist with research and routine tasks from the moment people start their day. 

Still, Dimon stressed that governments, companies and society must manage the transition carefully. He called for better planning around retraining, relocation, income support and early retirement — lessons he said were not fully applied during past waves of industrial disruption. 

“We should look at how we phase it in a way that we don’t damage a lot of people,” he said, underscoring that while AI’s promise is vast, its human cost cannot be ignored.