No.
Let’s Consider a Simple Example
Every day, countless businesses lose money due to poorly calculated decisions. The tools to perform these calculations correctly have been sitting in front of us for decades—Excel spreadsheets, which Google has fully commoditized and made available to anyone with an internet connection.
These powerful calculation tools have been universally accessible for literally decades. Now, ask yourself:
- How many people do you know who can truly use spreadsheets effectively?
- How many businesses purchase additional specialized software to solve problems that Excel could easily handle?
- How many financial decisions are still made with rough estimates or gut feelings despite having perfect calculation tools at everyone’s fingertips?
The issue was never about access to software. The tools to make superior financial decisions have been essentially free and universally available for a generation. Yet financial miscalculations remain one of the leading causes of business failure.
The Real Barrier: Human Implementation
If businesses are still struggling to effectively implement Excel—a 40-year-old technology with intuitive interfaces and countless free tutorials—what makes us think they’ll suddenly master significantly more complex AI tools?
Technology adoption doesn’t happen because tools exist. It happens when:
- People understand the specific problem they need to solve
- They recognize which tool is appropriate for that specific problem
- They develop the skills to implement that tool effectively
- Organizational culture supports the consistent use of the tool
None of these factors automatically come bundled with new technology, no matter how powerful it might be.
Are We Just Talking About This Because Everyone Else Is?
The current AI panic follows the same pattern as previous technology panics:
- Blockchain was going to eliminate all middlemen (it didn’t)
- Big data was going to make all decisions data-driven (it hasn’t)
- Mobile apps were going to make all traditional businesses obsolete (they didn’t)
These technologies did change how business operates, but in evolutionary ways that rewarded those who thoughtfully applied them to specific problems—not in revolutionary ways that eliminated entire job categories overnight.
If Excel—free, accessible, and user-friendly—hasn’t eliminated the need for financial professionals, why would we expect much more complex AI tools to eliminate entire professions?
Technology changes how work gets done. It rarely eliminates the need for skilled humans to guide, interpret, and implement it effectively.
So no, AI won’t take all our jobs. But it might change how we do them—just like spreadsheets did, without putting accountants out of work.