In May 2025, Dario Amodei, chief executive of Anthropic, warned that A.I. could eliminate half of entry-level white-collar jobs within five years. Yet unemployment has fallen to 4.1 percent as of August, raising questions about A.I.'s real labor market impact. New research reveals the technology is reshaping work in subtler ways.

Research from Sania Edlich of Princeton and Torsten Slok, chief economist at Apollo Global Management, analyzed 321 occupations and found that workers in A.I.-exposed roles experienced slower wage growth, while net employment remained stable. Companies are capturing productivity gains by suppressing wages rather than cutting headcount.

The study showed a 6.7 percent decline in real wage growth in A.I.-exposed occupations since 2023, with service workers hit hardest at a 24 percent decline. Meanwhile, corporate profits have risen. Companies like Sogolytics, a Virginia-based software firm serving Coca-Cola and United Airlines, have grown without proportionate hiring, with A.I. handling over half the baseline tasks for some roles.

Workers now face higher expectations, with A.I. replacing routine functions. Finding jobs has become more complicated, particularly for early-career college graduates in knowledge work.