Future of work: Zoho’s Sridhar Vembu says AI job loss isn’t the threat—economic distribution is

As artificial intelligence and automation continue to reshape industries, the real challenge lies not in job displacement but in ensuring fair access to the wealth created by machines, Zoho cofounder Sridhar Vembu has said.

In a hypothetical future where software development becomes fully automated—a possibility Vembu believes is still distant—millions of engineers could lose their jobs. However, he argued that the bigger issue is not a lack of meaningful human activity, but how people will afford goods and services in an economy where machines dominate production.

“It’s a matter of economic distribution, not just technology,” said Vembu, who is also the company’s chief scientist as quoted by an ET report.

He outlined two potential outcomes: either the cost of goods drops so close to zero that affordability becomes universal, or society compensates human-centric work—like caregiving, education, and environmental restoration—more generously, redistributing income from sectors that have become highly automated.

For either scenario to succeed equitably, Vembu emphasised the need for robust regulatory mechanisms, especially around monopoly control in the tech sector. Without checks on concentrated profits, he warned, productivity gains from automation could be hoarded by a few firms rather than benefiting the wider population.

“At least one nation will eventually get the political economy right,” he said, expressing optimism that thoughtful governance can ensure broad access to the benefits of automation.

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