IBM’s CEO just said the quiet part out loud on AI-related job losses

Ultimately, the main (or only) cost you have in a business is labor. Cutting costs means cutting the amount of work required to do something. If you invent a new technology which makes it faster to write or test code, then you need fewer people to achieve the same productivity.

Of course AI was about cutting jobs; you cannot cut costs without putting a dent in someone's employment somewhere. We should stop allowing people to lie about this and instead hold a percentage of their increased profitability accountable by taxing it and redirecting it to basic income.

Bear in mind the history (from Wikipedia)

> IBM originated from the unification of several companies that worked to automate routine business transactions, including the first companies to build punched card-based data tabulating machines and build time clocks. In 1911, these companies were amalgamated into the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company (CTR)

Even 130+ years ago, replacing humans doing routine-enough-to-automate work was the main objective.

“That means you can get the same work done with fewer people".

Not exactly news that firms view AI as a way to cut headcount, but interesting to see that IBM's chief exec has been so outspoken on the subject in recent months. Already cutting staff in HR and back office roles with the view of automating them long-term.