Geoffrey Hinton, the deep-learning pioneer popularly dubbed the “Godfather of AI,” says young job seekers should consider a career as a plumber as software continues to eclipse routine office work.
What Happened: “AI is just going to replace everybody” doing “mundane intellectual labor,” Hinton told “The Diary of a CEO” podcast, adding he would be “terrified” today in a call-center or paralegal post.
Hinton said physical trades remain safer because “it’s going to be a long time” before AI is as good at “physical manipulation,” even though he concedes that artificial intelligence models will eventually be “better than us at everything.”
Plumbing, electrical work and similar hands-on roles demand dexterity robots still lack, he noted, mirroring earlier advice he gave a parent in November 2024 to have their child “learn plumbing. Stay away from AI.”
The emeritus Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) (NASDAQ:GOOG) Google scientist warned that displacement is already underway. AI copilots will soon let one worker do what used to be the work of ten people, prompting mass layoffs in sectors with little elastic demand. Industries such as health care may absorb automation because “there’s almost endless demand,” but “most jobs … are not like that,” he said.
Why It Matters: Hinton, who left Google in 2023 to speak freely about AI risks, called large-scale unemployment the most immediate threat to human happiness. Even with a universal basic income, an idea he has pressed U.K. officials to study, people could lose purpose without meaningful work.
Policy makers should pair rapid reskilling with much more serious discussion of income guarantees before automation accelerates, he said, echoing earlier comments that governments must act “unless you’re sure [AI] won’t kill you, worry about it.”
For now, Hinton’s counsel is blunt. He suggests choosing careers that combine adaptability, dexterity and judgment, skills algorithms still struggle to copy, because as he recently explained to The Atlantic’s Nick Thompson back in 2023, “that’s where the jobs that survive AI for a long time are going to be.”
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