Computer programmer Fei Zhaojun\u2019s boss asked him if artificial intelligence could soon replace humans in coding jobs. Two weeks later, he was laid off from his job in Beijing, together with about 160 of his colleagues.<\/p>\n
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It\u2019s an increasingly common scenario as artificial intelligence, supported by government policies, reshapes\u00a0China\u2019s\u00a0massive job market. Some economists believe that might eventually undermine the overall strength of the world\u2019s second largest economy.<\/p>\n
Rapid adoption of AI in many fields, from computer programmers to script writing and physical tasks, is pushing people out of their jobs or leaving them afraid that it might. China is at the\u00a0vanguard of AI adoption\u00a0as government\u00a0policies\u00a0encourage people and businesses to use AI applications and\u00a0robotics\u00a0in all aspects of life, so people like Fei are figuring out how to adapt.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere appears to be far less anti-AI sentiment in China (than elsewhere). Most people seem either positive, neutral, or mildly interested in AI,\u201d said Shujing He, a Beijing-based senior analyst at advisory and research firm Plenum.<\/p>\n
\u201cIndividuals who worry about being replaced, as well as those who have already left traditional workplaces, are often eager to experiment with AI-enabled businesses and independent ventures,\u201d she said. \u201cThe level of interest is striking.\u201d<\/p>\n
Until recently, Fei had doubted AI could do programming work perfectly, even though his bosses thought it was close enough.<\/p>\n
\u201cMid-level coders\u2019 job are essentially replaceable in most of the cases,\u201d said Fei, 40. \u201cEven if it is a disaster that leads to replacing all humans, at this stage, you just have to use it as everyone else is using it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Now he\u2019s making vlog-style short videos during a career break while figuring out what he wants to do next. He\u2019s not making a living off of his videos, which are about ordinary people\u2019s lives, but hopes that they might help others.<\/p>\n
If you can\u2019t beat them, join them<\/h2>\n
Du Qinchun, a part-time translator, has been helping to train an AI model to do translations. That\u2019s brought him more work, at least temporarily.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut it\u2019s true that the pay in the industry has been cut by more than half compared to what it was years ago,\u201d said Du, who is based in southwestern China\u2019s Chengdu city.<\/p>\n
The trend is so evident that popular college programs in foreign languages have increasingly fallen out of favor as AI-powered translation tools have become more widespread.<\/p>\n
The share of Chinese industrial enterprises saying they use AI models and \u201cagents\u201d jumped to 47.5% last year from 9.6% in 2024, according to the market intelligence firm IDC.<\/p>\n
\u201cChina\u2019s vibrant open-source model ecosystem fosters greater AI application innovation in industrial settings, gradually closing the gap between foundational model capabilities and real-world enterprise value creation,\u201d said Yanze Du, an IDC senior research manager in Beijing.<\/p>\n
Humanoid robots can now, for example, sort parcels in postal centers, although still on a small-scale basis, and are pushing the boundaries in\u00a0performing\u00a0more human tasks such as directing traffic and making coffee. Food delivery robots are also gaining ground across the country, potentially threatening the livelihoods of millions of Chinese food delivery workers.<\/p>\n
Generative\u00a0AI\u00a0increasingly is used for creation, production and distribution in China\u2019s short drama industry. The number of live-action short and vertical video series designed for mobile phones fell about 75% in the first quarter of this year from a year earlier, according to Chinese media reports.<\/p>\n
\u201cTasks that once required specialized training can now be performed by almost anyone with access to AI tools. This is particularly evident in software development and multimedia creation,\u201d said Plenum\u2019s He. \u201cAs a result, workers whose roles are narrowly concentrated in these areas may face greater displacement risk.\u201d<\/p>\n
A report from International Labor Organization, meanwhile, found that women face higher risks of losing employment due to use of AI than men, as they tend to work in areas more suitable for automation, such as assembling electronics, and remain underrepresented in science and technology.<\/p>\n
AI has mixed effects on the slowing economy<\/h2>\n
Under China\u2019s \u201cAI Plus\u201d initiative and its\u00a0five-year plan\u00a0through 2030, the government is pushing to infuse AI across many industries, aiming to gain an edge in China\u2019s technology rivalry with the U.S.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat is specific to China is that the government is really into diffusing AI across the economy, so AI may get into different domains more quickly comparing to other countries,\u201d said Zilan Qian, a research associate at Oxford China Policy Lab.<\/p>\n
China\u2019s economic growth has already been\u00a0slowing. Consumer spending has lagged partly due to people becoming reluctant to spend because they\u2019re worried about losing their jobs. It\u2019s added to problems stemming from a\u00a0prolonged downturn in the housing market\u00a0that has undermined household wealth.<\/p>\n
China\u2019s tech industries may be innovative with high productivity, but they may not generate many new jobs, said Eswar Prasad, a professor of economics and trade policy at Cornell University.<\/p>\n
\u201cAI is likely to lift productivity across the board but could have a severe disruptive effect on employment, worsening the employment growth problem and resulting in a detrimental effect on social stability,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Similar to their U.S. rivals, Chinese tech giants have cut or restructured tens of thousands of\u00a0jobs,\u00a0partly due to AI. The outlook for the broader jobs market remains uncertain: China\u2019s overall urban unemployment rate hovers around 5%, but unemployment for people aged 16 to 24, excluding students, is roughly triple that.<\/p>\n
That said, in the longer run, some experts say unemployment rates could fall, since China\u2019s population of 1.4 billion is rapidly aging and\u00a0shrinking.<\/p>\n
By 2050, China is projected to have fewer than two working-age adults to support each retiree, compared with more than 2.5 in the U.S., said Xuenan Cao, a professor at San Francisco Bay University whose focus includes technology and society.<\/p>\n
\u201cAutomation could partially offset a shrinking workforce rather than being purely a threat to it,\u201d Cao said.<\/p>\n
Some embrace AI to find new ways to make a living<\/h2>\n
Wang Zhicheng, 32, often used AI for brainstorming and fact-checking in his previous job as a scriptwriter for a company that produces 3D animated educational videos and interactive exercises for children.<\/p>\n
After its parent company laid off roughly half of its 13 script writers, he chose to resign and work independently, making illustrated children\u2019s books.<\/p>\n
While AI sometimes saved time the scripts it generated, they often felt strange, Wang said. Episodes tended to be repetitive and formulaic and the level of detail devoted to knowledge varied widely.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can treat AI as a tool just like (Microsoft) Word,\u201d said Wang, who has started his own studio making picture books and other creative works. \u201cHumans are still the decision makers on which one to pick or pursue among all that AI generates.\u201d<\/p>\n
High school chemistry teacher Yang Zheng said he doesn\u2019t consider AI as a threat to his job even though students use AI for help with their homework.<\/p>\n
\u201cTeachers cannot be there all the time,\u201d he said. \u201cIt is a good thing for students as it generates in real-time so that students can ask follow-up questions,\u201d said Yang, 29. \u201cIt often gets things wrong, but it improves over time.\u201d<\/p>\n
____<\/p>\n
Fu Ting reported from Washington. AP video producer Wu Jia in Beijing contributed to this story.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
#boss #asked #replace #human #coders #weeks #colleagues #laid #Beijing<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Computer programmer Fei Zhaoju… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3009,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[1362,4341,3104,269,173,5606,5607,1263,2741,5608,619,1078,385,2067],"class_list":["post-3008","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-finance-news","tag-asked","tag-beijing","tag-boss","tag-business","tag-china","tag-coders","tag-colleagues","tag-human","tag-labor","tag-laid","tag-layoffs","tag-replace","tag-tech","tag-weeks"],"yoast_head":"\n
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