The growing use of artificial intelligence by businesses may be creating some jobs in the euro zone, rather than leading to job losses as many fear, an ECB blog post noted on Wednesday. Economists have long debated whether artificial intelligence will put white-collar workers out of work. A recent study by the Ifo Institute in Germany shows that more than a quarter of German companies expect that artificial intelligence will cause layoffs in the next five years.
However, the European Central Bank's own "Corporate Financing Channel Survey" found that companies that use artificial intelligence extensively are more likely to recruit more employees in the short term.
This articleDoes not represent the official position of the European Central Bank"In other words, in general, companies that deeply apply artificial intelligence tend to be hiring rather than laying off employees," the blog post said.
The article stated that companies planning to invest in artificial intelligence also have more optimistic expectations for future employment growth.
"This holds true regardless of the size of AI investment and suggests that companies are unlikely to pause hiring over the next year as they invest in AI technology," said the blog written by two ECB economists.
However, the author also mentioned that this prospect may change in the long term. Most of the pessimistic surveys cover a time span longer than the ECB's survey cycle, and once artificial intelligence begins to significantly change production processes, employment prospects may change accordingly.