‘AI can’t climb a ladder’: Why Lowe’s CEO is doubling down on ‘critical’ trades and blue-collar work with a $250 million bet

Ellison noted that, with a hard shift toward automating work tasks, artificial intelligence can only do — and replace us — so much.

"As powerful as AI will become, AI can't climb a ladder to change the batteries in your smoke detector," he told Fortune. "It can't change your furnace filter; it can't clean your dryer vent; it can't repair a hole on your roof."

Do the trades need support?

Aside from the obvious connection — Lowe's is a home improvement store and tradespeople do improve homes — why is the retailer investing so much in keeping America flush with blue collars?

A potentially dire shortage is the brief answer.

Earlier this year, the Associated Builders and Contractors released a report (4) in which it estimated the U.S. will need 349,000 net new workers this year, and another 456,000 new workers in 2027, as construction spending is expected to grow "for the first time in years."

And some of that demand is a direct result of AI.

Across the country, some 3,000 new data centers are planned or already under construction this year, according to Axios (5). As Ellison noted, AI can't (yet) show up to the job site and help build the centers it relies on — let alone fix and service everything that will eventually need fixing and servicing.

Lowe's isn't the only organization throwing large sums into trades. Ellison cheered BlackRock's $100 million initiative "to expand economic opportunity and power the next generation of America's skilled trades workers," announced in March (6).

"We know we can't do it alone," he told Fortune. "This is going to be so critical to the future, not only of our company, but to our country."