A new study from the European Central Bank released last week finds that fears about AI-driven job losses may be premature. On average, companies integrating AI are slightly more likely to hire more workers than cut with—with AI-intensive firms about 4% more likely to grow headcounts, and companies investing in the technology roughly 2% more likely to hire than firms that aren’t investing at all.
While the margins are small, the findings suggest that companies adopting AI aren’t shedding workers to make room for the technology. Instead, many appear to be using it to boost productivity while expanding their workforce.
“Investment in and the intensive use of AI are not yet replacing jobs,” the ECB economists wrote. “In fact, some firms are hiring additional employees—perhaps because they are looking to develop and implement AI technologies while maintaining their existing production processes, or because AI is a way to help them scale up more quickly.”
Part of the explanation may simply be that AI adoption is still relatively early. Among the European companies surveyed, only about two-thirds say their employees use AI at all, and fewer than one-third report investing in the technology.
