Fed’s Kashkari says big companies are slowing hiring
Minneapolis Federal Reserve President Neel Kashkari said Monday that artificial intelligence is causing major companies to slow hiring and that many businesses are seeing “real productivity gains” thanks to the technology.
Kashkari said companies have told him AI is impacting their hiring plans and he expects low hiring and low layoffs to continue in the labor market. But that’s less true for smaller companies, he said.
“AI is a really big corporate story,” Kashkari told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Monday.
Since OpenAI kicked off the AI boom with the launch of ChatGPT in 2022, companies in the US have been spending billions of dollars to bring the technology to their employees. But as investors and executives chase promises of greater efficiency and productivity, the rapid rise of artificial intelligence has also raised concerns about safety and security.
Still, Kashkari said businesses are starting to see some return on their investments.
“There’s no question that there are some misinvestments or malinvestments, but there are a lot of anecdotes of businesses using this and actually seeing productivity gains,” Kashkari said. “The businesses I spoke to two years ago were skeptical and said, ‘No, we’re actually using this now.'”
WRISTWATCH: Watch CNBC’s full interview with Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari
