At the beginning of the year, the World Economic Forum issued the results of its Future of Jobs Report. The survey of 1,000 large organisations worldwide identified AI as the top driver of potential job gains by 2030, and noted that, despite potential job losses of 92 million, the technology would help create 170 million jobs globally over the next five years, a net increase.
Yet that view is now being challenged by recent surveys by recruitment companies, which indicate a slump in professional services hiring attributed to AI. What does this trend mean for the jobs market in Ireland?
According to Erik O’Donovan, the head of digital economy policy at Ibec, labour market disruption, including in lower-level knowledge work and likely net job creation are both predicted and reflected within research on the evolution of AI adoption. “Research certainly tries to identify professions at risk from automation,” he says. “However, AI is a general-purpose technology, whose use may impact tasks within professions. AI use may be transformative and can complement, reshape or displace a work task. Examples include content generation or predictive elements in a decision process.” Naturally, this may impact both organisations and traditional career pathways, he acknowledges.
Alan Smeaton is a professor of computing and a founding director of the Insight Centre for Data Analytics at Dublin City University. He says that hype around job losses is being at least partly driven by the very recent emergence of agentic AI, forms of computer processing where software agents perform tasks with minimal human intervention.
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“This is driven, in turn, by the need for a return on the huge investments made in AI by big tech companies who see agentic AI as their next big thing, bigger than any previous next big thing, but among the independent researchers, there is great scepticism around it,” he notes.
Indeed, academics are not impressed by how the tech behemoths are using it. “Many of us are not opposed to AI, but we question some companies’ positioning around AI as they are using it for cost-cutting rather than as an opportunity for expansion and uplifting,” Smeaton points out. “We see Amazon doing this, and some companies eliminating the apprenticeships among their employees that develop expertise, all in a hope to save some money.”
Mark Kelly, founder of AI Ireland, has been working in the field of staffing and consulting for 17 years. He says the current data indicates that certain professions are indeed experiencing significant shifts due to AI adoption.
“Roles involving highly repetitive, data-intensive, or predictable tasks are prime candidates for automation,” he notes. “This doesn’t always equate to outright job elimination but rather a redefinition of job responsibilities, requiring employees to develop new skills and collaborate effectively with AI systems. The focus is increasingly on tasks that demand human creativity, critical thinking, complex problem-solving, and interpersonal skills.”
There is a valid concern that some sectors might primarily deploy AI for short-term cost efficiencies, focusing on automating tasks to reduce operational expenses, Kelly agrees. “This approach, while offering immediate financial benefits, risks underutilisation of AI’s broader potential,” he notes. “True long-term value from AI comes from leveraging it for innovation, enhancing customer experiences, creating new products and services, and improving decision-making. A myopic focus on cost-cutting alone will hinder competitiveness and prevent the realisation of transformative growth opportunities - leaders must ensure AI strategies align with comprehensive business growth objectives, not just expense reduction. But given Ireland’s significant employment within tech and advanced manufacturing, Kelly admits concerns about potential job displacement due to AI are understandable.
“These sectors are at the forefront of AI integration, meaning tasks can be automated more readily.”
However, a more nuanced view suggests that while some roles may diminish, AI also presents substantial opportunities for job creation in new specialisations, such as developers, data scientists, and ethicists, as well as enhancement of existing roles.
“The key for Ireland will be proactive investment in reskilling and upskilling initiatives to ensure the workforce can adapt to evolving industry demands and leverage AI as a productivity enhancer rather than solely a cost-cutting tool,” Kelly says.
O’Donovan agrees, saying Ireland cannot be “passive” when it comes to this threat. “The readiness of Government, sectors, organisations and individuals to realise economic opportunities from AI, including net job creation, requires action,” he says. “AI literacy and skills are now a strategic imperative for all. Ireland needs to mobilise and coordinate the whole education and training system, and leverage the National Training Fund in developing innovation supports and pathways in upskilling and reskilling for a more AI-literate and resilient workforce.”
Indeed, investing in AI literacy and digital transformation programmes is no longer optional, Kelly adds. “To sustain competitive advantage and differentiate in a more challenging global landscape, proactive engagement with these technologies is essential.”
Not everyone agrees with the latest murmurings about overall job losses. Laoise Mullane, director of workforce consulting and AI adoption with PwC Ireland, says their data does not show job destruction from AI, even in the most automatable of roles.
“Counter to some expectations, the data from the PwC 2025 AI Jobs Barometer shows that job openings are growing across AI-exposed occupations, albeit more slowly than in less exposed occupations,” she says. “Our report finds that while some traditional roles may no longer be needed in their previous forms for example data entry clerks, many are evolving into new, often more valuable positions, for example, data analysts.”
Mullane echoes Kelly and O’Donovan by saying Ireland must grasp the nettle on the skillsets that will be required in the AI era. “The critical questions for society are the following: are jobs being created faster than they are displaced? And do people have the skills to adapt to a changing job market? In simple terms, the focus needs to be less about a concern for jobs and more about skills.”
She adds that organisations are increasingly leveraging AI not just to enhance operational efficiency but as a strategic driver of growth. “The opportunity is not to do the same with fewer people, but to do more with more. Agentic AI offers an ability for organisations to transform how work is done, rather than to simply augment or automate current processes.”
Mullane also points out that the impact of AI on job numbers is complex and nuanced. “While job numbers are growing in AI-exposed occupations, they are growing more slowly compared to less exposed occupations,” she notes. “This means that while AI is creating new opportunities, it is also reshaping the job market, requiring workers to adapt and acquire new skills.”
Planning is thus paramount, but given the rapid pace of AI evolution, precise, long-term predictions on how it will ultimately impact the jobs market are challenging, if not almost impossible. “The field is characterised by continuous breakthroughs, making it difficult to forecast specific job market impacts or societal changes with absolute certainty over a five or ten-year horizon,” Kelly says. “While we can identify current trends and likely directions, unforeseen advancements or regulatory shifts could significantly alter the landscape. Therefore, while we can prepare for likely scenarios, our strategies must remain agile and adaptive, prioritising continuous learning and a flexible approach to technological integration.”
According to Smeaton, many of our AI concerns around job destruction will ultimately remain unfounded. “On the jobs front, throughout history, with every great disruption caused by a new technology - the printing press, the internet, pick your favourite - comes a period of extreme uncertainty and fear,” he says. “The fears range from job displacement to complete takeover by whatever is the new technology. It is the concept of change that scares many people, not the concept of AI.
“Why am I so confident in this? We have intelligence and we have creativity, which are a chaotic interplay of ideas and thoughts drawn from our memories, experiences, empathies and emotions. AI, and in particular, generative AI is a mimic of human output but from a completely different process and while it can replicate human output, it cannot replicate human thought processes.”
O’Donovan agrees. “The transformative nature of AI offers opportunities in reshaping businesses and creating new ones. While AI is undoubtedly an important tool, it would be naïve to underestimate the importance of talent development, business operations and cultures that have dependencies on human interaction and creativity in this discussion.”
