AI reduction and invisible governance gap
Barclays plans to cut around 5,000 jobs, mainly in support departments, citing AI as a reason. Around the same time, Axios reported that an uninvestigated AI agent was accessing U.S. bank accounts, and Google's education AI came under scrutiny from the Senate over concerns about children's mental health. AI is infiltrating people, accounts, and children's lives before there is even debate about whether or not to introduce it. Readers cannot verify for themselves the claims made by those implementing the product that it is safe and that it is effective. State laws and competition between countries are not set up to keep up with this pace. What we can see from this half-day movement is that we need to change our judgment not so much about the pros and cons of introducing the system, but about who should complete the preliminary inspections and who should check the results after the introduction.
Barclays plans to cut approximately 5,000 jobs, mainly in support departments (business + IT). The New York Times reported this as layoffs due to AI-driven cost reductions (The New York Times). AI is cited as the reason for the reduction, and the number of reductions is shown in concrete numbers. What readers see here is that the results of the introduction have begun to be talked about in terms of how many people have been reduced. In that case, the number of reductions alone is not enough for those evaluating the introduction. It is also necessary to ask where the people in charge of the reduced jobs will go.
On the relearning side, the people responsible for the efforts are divided. India's IIT Madras has released a white paper covering AI jobs, global standards and reskilling (The Economic Times). In the US, Sundance and the University of Colorado Boulder will establish an AI education center for filmmakers (Longmont Times-Call). In Japan, Houou High School had students learn about AI through a special class in which they created videos to say "thank you" to their families (Minami Nippon Shimbun). The ages and occupations of the people studying at universities, film industry organizations, and high schools are different. On the other hand, it is unclear from this article whether people targeted for cuts like those at Barclays will be able to receive such education. Having retraining available is one thing, but having it available to those who need it is another.
The burden goes beyond just employment. Former New York Federal Reserve President Dudley believes that AI investment will push the Federal Reserve into a situation where interest rates can go up and down significantly (BigGo Finance). From this perspective, huge investments in AI will extend not only within companies that are reducing staff, but also to those who borrow and save money through interest rates. Costs, both in terms of employment and funding, flow out of the implementing company.
