Google CEO Sundar Pichai thinks artificial intelligence could one day be advanced enough to run large companies. He said that as AI develops quickly, the role of chief executive might eventually be handled by these systems.
He believes that as AI becomes more powerful, many industries will change. Some jobs may go away, others will evolve, and people will have to adjust. Pichai did not mention which CEO tasks AI could do better, but he made it clear that leadership jobs will also be affected by new technology.
Pichai is not alone in his view. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has said that AI will eventually do his job better than he can, and he looks forward to that day. Sebastian Siemiatkowski, CEO of Klarna, has also said that AI could handle any job, including his.
A survey by the online learning platform edX asked 500 chief executives about AI. It found that 49 percent think most or all of their work should be automated by AI in the future.
Not everyone shares this opinion. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang disagrees. He says AI cannot do what human leaders do, and the technology is not close to replacing workers on a large scale. He believes AI might do some tasks more efficiently, but that does not mean it can take over leadership jobs.
Pichai thinks AI will soon help people make everyday decisions. For example, people might ask AI whether to invest in a stock or get help understanding the pros and cons of a medical treatment. He expects AI to become a useful assistant in these situations.
He added that more work is needed before these abilities are common, but he finds the progress exciting.
For now, AI is still just a tool. However, people in the tech industry continue to discuss how much further its influence might grow in the future.
