McKinsey Sees AI Creating 41 Million US Jobs as 11 Million Workers Need New Careers by 2035
Updated
Updated · Fortune · Oct 3
McKinsey Sees AI Creating 41 Million US Jobs as 11 Million Workers Need New Careers by 2035
3 articles · Updated · Fortune · Oct 3
Summary
41 million U.S. jobs could be created by 2035 even as AI and automation cut demand for 36 million, leaving a net gain but forcing about 11 million workers to change occupations, McKinsey said.
770,000 people a year would need to switch into entirely different fields—about 3.6 times the historical average—making worker mobility, not job scarcity, the main challenge in McKinsey’s base case.
Lower-paid workers face the biggest disruption: they are 7.6 times more likely than higher-wage workers to need a new occupation, with losses concentrated in office support, retail and transportation while healthcare, construction and management grow.
Only one in seven displaced workers has a direct path to a growing job with little retraining and similar pay, while nearly half face large skill gaps or credential barriers and about 85% of growing jobs require a credential.
76% of expanding jobs cannot be done remotely, tying the shift to geography as well as skills and reinforcing the pull of cities and talent hubs investing in universities and AI-focused campuses.
With AI eliminating millions of office roles, who will actually fund the massive retraining and relocation required for America's transitioning workforce?
As AI pushes junior white-collar workers toward physical trades, how will this forced occupational shift redefine career success by 2035?
If tomorrow's growing jobs require hands-on skills instead of remote laptops, are cities truly prepared for the sudden influx of relocating workers?