This weekly update covers major changes happening in businesses as they use new AI agent technology. An AI agent is a smart computer program that can make decisions and do tasks by itself, like a helpful robot coworker.

Companies are moving fast to use AI agents in their work, but there are big challenges. Research from multiple business groups this week shows that AI is creating winners and losers in the job market. Entry-level jobs are being hit the hardest, with young workers aged 22-25 seeing an 16% drop in employment in jobs exposed to AI. At the same time, job openings for work that needs human thinking and teamwork with AI went up 22%, while job postings for simple, repeatable work fell 17%.

A surprising finding: even though companies bought AI tools to save time, many workers are actually spending more time on tasks—up to 346% longer in some cases. Workers need to check AI's work, fix mistakes, and organize new ways of working.

Companies are making a big mistake with their money. They spend 93% of their AI budget on technology and only 7% on training their people. This imbalance is already causing problems. Businesses expect AI job cuts to jump nine times higher in 2026, jumping from 55,000 jobs last year to 502,000 jobs this year. Yet 90% of company leaders say AI hasn't affected jobs at their own company yet, even as announcements of AI-related layoffs keep happening.

The good news: AI agents are becoming real tools that companies can trust and use. But success requires companies to invest in their workers and build systems carefully. The future of work depends on smart choices happening right now.