OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has confirmed that some companies are engaging in 'AI washing' by falsely attributing workforce reductions to artificial intelligence. Speaking at the India AI Impact Summit, Altman acknowledged that while AI will eventually displace jobs, some firms are using the technology as a scapegoat for planned layoffs they would have implemented anyway.

Altman's comments come amid conflicting data about AI's actual impact on employment. A recent National Bureau of Economic Research study found that nearly 90% of surveyed executives reported no AI-related employment changes over the past three years. Meanwhile, prominent tech leaders like Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei have warned that AI could eliminate 50% of entry-level office jobs, while Klarna's CEO announced plans to reduce its 3,000-person workforce by one-third by 2030 partly due to AI acceleration.

Data from Yale Budget Lab suggests the mass worker displacement predicted by some tech leaders is not yet materializing. Using Bureau of Labor Statistics data through November 2025, researchers found no significant differences in unemployment rates or job composition changes for positions with high AI exposure. Economist Erik Brynjolfsson noted a recent decoupling of job growth from GDP growth, suggesting we may be transitioning from AI investment to measurable productivity gains.