AI Agents Are Replacing Human Workers Faster Than Ever

This week, workers around the world are facing a big challenge: AI agents are taking over jobs at an incredible speed. AI agents are different from regular AI tools because they can actually do work on their own, making decisions and completing tasks without a human telling them exactly what to do each step of the way. In the United States, companies cited AI as the reason for nearly 50,000 job cuts announced so far this year, with a huge jump in October when 31,039 of those cuts were announced in just one month. These numbers show that AI agents aren't just a future worry - they're affecting real jobs right now.

The Scale of Job Loss Is Getting Bigger

The problem is getting worse very quickly. Recent data shows that between January and July 2025, U.S. companies eliminated more than 800,000 jobs, which is a 75% increase compared to the same period in 2024. While companies give different reasons for cutting jobs, AI agents are increasingly being named as the main cause. Large companies like Deutsche Lufthansa AG in Germany announced they would cut 4,000 admin jobs by the end of the decade because of increased AI use. Dutch lender ING Group said nearly 1,000 positions were at risk from digitalization and AI, and Krafton Inc., a South Korean video game company, said it would freeze hiring to focus on an AI-first approach. These companies across different countries and industries are all using AI agents to do work that people used to do.

What Jobs Are Being Affected?

Excellent question! AI agents are targeting specific types of jobs. According to experts, AI could eliminate 50% of all entry-level white-collar jobs within the next five years. This means jobs like data entry, customer support, and administrative work are at the biggest risk right now. One company used AI agents to replace its entire U.S.-based customer service staff, moving customer conversations to AI tools and cutting costs significantly. IBM has used AI agents to replace the work of hundreds of HR staff, though it hired more people in other areas. What makes this different from past job losses is that AI agents can do many different types of work - from routine tasks to more complicated jobs like research, analysis, and even coding.

Workers Don't Trust AI Agents

Here's something important: workers are really worried about AI agents making decisions about their jobs and careers. A survey of over 1,000 working adults found that 74% of workers said being interviewed by an AI agent would change how they feel about a company. Many workers think AI agents feel impersonal and don't respect them as people. More than half of the workers surveyed said they prefer humans - not computer programs - to review their job applications, check their work performance, and make decisions that affect their careers. Only 27% of workers said they fully trust their employers to use AI responsibly. This trust problem is huge because companies are planning to use AI agents in their hiring process, with 1 in 3 companies saying AI will run their hiring process by 2026. Workers are also worried that AI agents might screen out qualified people unfairly or introduce bias, meaning AI agents might treat some groups of people worse than others.

Entry-Level Workers Face the Biggest Threat

Recent college graduates are in for a tough time. U.S. Senator Mark Warner warned that unemployment among recent college graduates could skyrocket to 25% in the next two to three years because of AI agents taking over entry-level jobs. The current unemployment rate for recent graduates is already at 9.3%, the highest level outside of the pandemic since 2014. Warner is worried that if companies stop hiring new graduates because AI agents can do the work cheaper, young people will never get a chance to start their careers and learn skills. Senator Bernie Sanders predicted that tech automation could eliminate nearly 100 million jobs in the U.S., with entry-level positions being hit hardest. This is a serious problem because people need those starting jobs to build experience.

Workers Aren't Worried Yet - But They Should Be

Interestingly, even when workers are told that AI agents could take their jobs soon, most of them still aren't very worried. This might be because AI agents are still relatively new and many people don't understand how powerful they are. The research shows that 77% of workers expect AI to affect their career within five years, but only 31% report getting any AI-related training from their employers. This big gap between what workers think will happen and what companies are preparing them for is a major problem.

What Comes Next?

Congress is starting to pay attention to this issue. Senator Mark Warner is working on a job retraining program and wants AI companies to help pay for it since they're causing the disruption. He and Senator Josh Hawley introduced a bill requiring big companies to report any AI-related job effects to the government. Some experts think that if companies can make AI agents work better in daily business, even more job cuts will follow - with Goldman Sachs predicting that AI will lead companies to cut workers by 4% in the next year and 11% in three years. The future depends on whether governments and companies can help workers adapt to this change through retraining and support programs before AI agents become even more powerful.