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'Godfather of AI' issues major warning about technology replacing humans in many jobs

The Nobel laureate believes that 2026 will see way more people lose their jobs to the technology.
PUBLISHED DEC 29, 2025
Employees walking out of the office after leaving their job. (Cover image source: Getty Images | Photo by Anna Moneymaker)
Employees walking out of the office after leaving their job. (Cover image source: Getty Images | Photo by Anna Moneymaker)

The surge of Artificial Intelligence has attracted investments from billionaires, and companies across sectors are incorporating it in their operations. AI can be a tool for humans, but recently, Americans have been worried that their jobs might be in danger. After a spate of layoffs in 2025, which is expected to continue into 2026, a Nobel laureate, who is also known as the Godfather of AI, believes that the technology will replace several other jobs.

Representative image of a woman holding a layoff notice (Image source: Getty Images/Photo by nathaphat)
Representative image of a woman holding a layoff notice (Image source: Getty Images/Photo by nathaphat)

AI is constantly evolving, and it almost seems like the technology is getting better with each passing day. Jobs have been affected by the thousands over the last few years. Call centers are perhaps the worst hit by massive layoffs, and now, as technology gets better, advanced roles may also be compromised as companies are cutting costs. Labour is among the highest costs for a company, as they have to pay wages every month.

“I think we’re going to see AI get even better. It’s already extremely good. We’re going to see it having the capabilities to replace many, many jobs. It’s already able to replace jobs in call centers, but it’s going to be able to replace many other jobs,” Hinton said, according to a report in Fortune. The Nobel laureate even believes that software engineering tasks, which at one time seemed impossible without humans, might not need any manpower at all.

Geoffrey Hinton (R) attending the Nobel Prize Banquet 2024 in Stockholm. (Image credit: Getty Images | Photo by Pascal Le Segretain)
Geoffrey Hinton (R) attending the Nobel Prize Banquet 2024 in Stockholm. (Image credit: Getty Images | Photo by Pascal Le Segretain)

Despite being dubbed the ‘godfather of AI,’ Hinton is worried about the rapid development of AI and how it may affect businesses. At the end of the day, only the rich profit from automation and cost-cutting. The vast majority of people will end up unemployed and financially unstable thanks to these layoffs. Hinton said that he was also worried about an AI’s ability to deceive people.

“I’m probably more worried,” he said, before adding, “It’s progressed even faster than I thought. In particular, it’s got better at doing things like reasoning and also at things like deceiving people.” The computer scientist believes that if an AI understands that a human might want to prevent it from carrying out its goals, it will employ tactics to deceive that person so that it can do what it has been programmed to.

(Image Source: Getty Images| Photo by Andriy Onufriyenko)
Representative image of AI in use. (Image Source: Getty Images| Photo by Andriy Onufriyenko)

Of course, there are several positives when it comes to AI. However, the man called the godfather of the technology is not sure if the positives outweigh the negatives. “But along with those wonderful things comes some scary things, and I don’t think people are putting enough work into how we can mitigate those scary things,” he said, before mentioning, “I think the big companies are betting on it causing massive job replacement by AI, because that’s where the big money is going to be.”

More on Market Realist:

Walmart has a lot of changes lined up for 2026 — AI to play a much larger role at its stores

Billionaires are investing heavily in AI stocks — and one of them could be a game-changer soon

Top investor has a major warning about AI that could have a 'terrifying' impact on job market

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