Hinton Warns AI Boosts Unemployment, Profits Skyrocket

Published Date : 7/9/2025 

Pioneering computer scientist Geoffrey Hinton, known as the 'godfather of AI,' discusses the potential impact of artificial intelligence on employment and profits in a recent interview with the Financial Times. 

Pioneering computer scientist Geoffrey Hinton, whose groundbreaking work has earned him a Nobel Prize and the title of 'godfather of AI,' has issued a stark warning about the future of artificial intelligence. In a wide-ranging interview with the Financial Times, Hinton, who formerly worked for Google, discussed the potential threats and benefits of AI, and how it will reshape the job market and economic landscape.

Hinton’s predictions are sobering. He believes that AI will lead to a significant surge in unemployment while simultaneously boosting profits. “What’s actually going to happen is rich people are going to use AI to replace workers,” Hinton said. “It’s going to create massive unemployment and a huge rise in profits. It will make a few people much richer and most people poorer. That’s not AI’s fault; that is the capitalist system.”

This sentiment echoes his earlier comments to Fortune, where he criticized AI companies for prioritizing short-term profits over long-term consequences. “AI companies are more concerned with short-term profits than the long-term consequences of the technology,” he stated. While layoffs haven’t yet spiked, there is growing evidence that AI is shrinking job opportunities, particularly at the entry level where recent college graduates start their careers.

A survey from the New York Fed found that companies using AI are more likely to retrain their employees than fire them, though layoffs are expected to rise in the coming months. Hinton previously noted that healthcare is one industry that might be relatively safe from the potential job Armageddon. “If you could make doctors five times as efficient, we could all have five times as much healthcare for the same price,” he explained on the Diary of a CEO YouTube series in June. “There’s almost no limit to how much healthcare people can absorb—patients always want more healthcare if there’s no cost to it.”

Despite this, Hinton believes that jobs performing mundane tasks will be taken over by AI, while those requiring high levels of skill may be spared. In his interview with the FT, he also dismissed OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s idea of a universal basic income as a solution to AI-driven unemployment. “It won’t deal with human dignity and the value people derive from having jobs,” Hinton argued.

Hinton has long warned about the dangers of AI without proper safeguards, estimating a 10% to 20% chance that the technology could wipe out humans after the development of superintelligence. He categorizes the risks into two main areas: the inherent risks posed by the technology itself and the consequences of AI being manipulated by individuals with malicious intent. “We don’t know what is going to happen, we have no idea, and people who tell you what is going to happen are just being silly,” Hinton said. “We are at a point in history where something amazing is happening, and it may be amazingly good, and it may be amazingly bad. We can make guesses, but things aren’t going to stay like they are.”

Hinton also shared how he uses AI in his personal life, revealing that OpenAI’s ChatGPT is his product of choice. While he primarily uses the chatbot for research, he recounted a humorous story about a former girlfriend who used ChatGPT to criticize his behavior during their breakup. “She got the chatbot to explain how awful my behavior was and gave it to me. I didn’t think I had been a rat, so it didn’t make me feel too bad... I met somebody I liked more, you know how it goes,” he quipped.

When asked about his departure from Google in 2023, Hinton clarified that it was not to speak more freely about the dangers of AI, as some media reports suggested. “I left because I was 75, I could no longer program as well as I used to, and there’s a lot of stuff on Netflix I haven’t had a chance to watch,” he said. “I had worked very hard for 55 years, and I felt it was time to retire... And I thought, since I am leaving anyway, I could talk about the risks.” 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQS): 

Q: What did Geoffrey Hinton predict about AI's impact on employment and profits?

A: Geoffrey Hinton predicted that AI will lead to massive unemployment and a significant rise in profits, making a few people much richer and most people poorer.

Q: Why did Geoffrey Hinton leave Google?

A: Hinton left Google because he was 75 and felt he could no longer program as well as he used to. He also wanted to watch more content on Netflix and retire after working for 55 years.

Q: What does Hinton think about the idea of a universal basic income to address AI-driven unemployment?

A: Hinton believes that a universal basic income won't address human dignity and the value people derive from having jobs.

Q: Which industry does Hinton think will be safe from AI-related job losses?

A: Hinton believes that healthcare is one industry that will be relatively safe from AI-related job losses, as making doctors more efficient could lead to more accessible healthcare for everyone.

Q: What are the two main categories of risks associated with AI according to Hinton?

A: Hinton categorizes the risks of AI into two main areas: the inherent risks posed by the technology itself and the consequences of AI being manipulated by individuals with malicious intent. 

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