‘Things are going to get much, much worse’: Andrew Yang says AI could eliminate millions of jobs and split the US economy — how to stay ahead

“Over the last number of years, we have automated away four million manufacturing jobs,” he said. “And unfortunately, I'm here to say things are going to get much, much worse.”

This isn’t just about blue-collar work anymore. Yang argues the next wave of disruption is coming for the kinds of jobs many people assumed were safe. That could have major consequences for income, savings and long-term financial security.

AI isn’t just coming for blue-collar jobs

For years, automation was mostly associated with manufacturing and manual labor, but Yang says that assumption no longer holds.

“We're going to eliminate all these entry-level white collar jobs, and recent college grads aren't going to be able to get consulting jobs,” he said on the podcast.

Yang argues the shift will break the traditional career ladders by eliminating entry-level roles. If those jobs disappear, Yang believes that it will break the traditional career path, pointing to industries like law as a clear example of what’s already happening.

“Lawyering is highly structured. It's very process oriented. It's kind of the ideal environment for AI,” he explained. “I have friends who are partners in law firms who say, ‘Look, I'm giving AI work that would have taken a second or third-year associate a week to complete. It gives it back to me in 20 minutes.’”

As Yang notes, the writing appears to be on the wall. If firms can replace junior employees with software, they may stop hiring for those roles altogether.

That won’t just reduce jobs today, as it will also shrink the pipeline for future senior professionals.

Nearly half of all jobs are on the line

Yang estimates that a significant portion of the workforce is directly exposed to automation risk.

“44% of American jobs are either repetitive cognitive or repetitive manual,” he said on the podcast. “Those are the jobs you should try and steer clear of because those are the jobs that AI is going to decimate.”

While it’s unclear where Yang’s stat comes from, research from McKinsey suggests that AI agents could theoretically automate more than half of current U.S. working hours (2). The same study suggested that AI will handle more common tasks, freeing up about $2.9 trillion of economic value around AI-driven workflows by 2030.

To Yang, that means jobs in office or administrative work, legal or accounting support, or even warehouse and production roles, are all at risk. That’s because they all share one key trait: Predictable patterns, the kind of tasks that AI excels at.

That said, not every job is equally vulnerable. According to Yang, roles that are harder to automate tend to fall into two categories:

• Non-repetitive manual work: electricians, plumbers, HVAC technicians
• Non-repetitive cognitive work: creative roles, entrepreneurship or positions that involve managing or directing AI systems

Yang has made this point elsewhere, arguing that the jobs people once viewed as “safe” may actually be among the most exposed (3). In a recent blog post, he warned that structured, desk-based work is increasingly vulnerable because AI can now complete many of those tasks faster and at a lower cost.

In other words, the safest positions are those that either require physical adaptability or higher-level thinking.

The real divide isn’t jobs, it’s who benefits

Yang argues the biggest shift won’t just be job losses. It will be wealth inequality.

“You have this K-shaped economy,” he said. “The top 20% are then taking off… that crew is going to be the crew that leverages AI in various ways.”

A K-shaped economy describes a split recovery where different groups move in opposite directions at the same time. One side of the “K” moves upward (the 20% Yang cited): incomes rise, investments grow and opportunities expand. The other side moves downward: wages stagnate, job security weakens and it becomes harder to build wealth.

According to Yang, the winners in this scenario are those who can use AI tools, have capital or equity, and have an audience.

“If you have a combination of those three things then you can become superpowered,” he said. Without them, he continued, “It’s a real struggle.”

Young people are at risk

The changing economy is already influencing behavior, especially among younger workers.

“Young people are taking significantly more risk because they see it as their only viable option out of just mediocrity,” said Graham Stephan during the discussion.

Yang added that economic mobility itself is declining.

“So statistically the odds of a kid doing better than their parents are now sub 50%,” he said, referencing an analysis released on Opportunity Insights comparing the “absolute income mobility” of children born in the 1940s and those born in the 1980s (4).

That’s a major change from previous generations, where upward mobility was more common. Rising housing costs, higher living expenses and increased competition for high-paying jobs all contribute to that pressure, pushing some people toward riskier financial decisions in order to get ahead.

What you can do now to stay ahead

If AI is going to reshape the economy, Yang suggests individuals need to think differently about money and opportunity.

The goal isn’t just to earn income, it’s to build assets and position yourself among the people who benefit from these changes. That starts with understanding your finances.

Take control of your money

Getting into the “top tier” often begins with knowing exactly where your money is going.

Monarch Money puts all your finances under one roof, from your banking statements to your investments. You can also add separate or joint accounts to your dashboard, which can be great for tracking grocery runs for couples or for helping your child get used to big-picture financial planning as a parent. The app is also well reviewed. In fact, Forbes ranked Monarch Money as its best budgeting app for 2025, as did the Wall Street Journal.

And the best part? Monarch Money offers a seven-day free trial so you can see if it’s right for you. If you like what you see, you could then snag 50% off your first year with code WISE50.

Start investing, even in small amounts

Building wealth doesn’t require large upfront capital — consistency matters more.

According to a survey conducted by Clever Real Estate, 74% of respondents reported having a spending problem, with 55% admitting they often spend recklessly (5).

If you find it difficult to stop overindulging and start investing, you can start to right the ship by building savings habits into everyday spending. With Acorns, you can automatically invest spare change from your everyday purchases into a diversified portfolio of ETFs managed by experts at firms like Vanguard and BlackRock.

For instance, if you buy a donut for $3.25, Acorns will round up the purchase to $4 and invest the difference, turning everyday spending into long-term investing. It might not sound like much, but those small amounts can add up quickly. If you invested just $0.75 per day, that’s about $274 per year.