Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky isn’t afraid of AI replacing jobs. In fact, he thinks it will create more of them — especially in the startup world.
Since ChatGPT became popular last winter, tech icons from Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak to billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban have acknowledged their concern that artificial intelligence will replace human workers in nearly every industry.
but they forgot something, chesky recently told The ‘Startup This Week’ podcast: We don’t even know what kind of jobs it’s going to create.
“It’s easier to imagine which jobs will be replaced than which jobs will be created,” Chesky said. “That (would) require us to imagine things that don’t exist.”
Already, AI has made Airbnb’s software engineers more productive, with 30% of daily tasks being handled by tools like ChatGPT within the next six months, Chesky said. That doesn’t mean the jobs of these engineers are necessarily at risk, he said, and the time saved allows them to focus on harder, more personal projects.
Computer scientists aren’t the only potential beneficiaries, he said. As AI develops, you’ll be able to tell a chatbot in plain English what you want on a website, and the technology will build it for you, no coding language required, says the Airbnb CEO.
“I think it’s going to create millions of startups … entrepreneurship is going to be a boon,” Chesky said. “Essentially anyone can do the equivalent of what software engineering only allowed you to do five years ago.”
Chesky isn’t alone in thinking this way. AI is already helping people make more money in less time, RSE Ventures CEO Matt Higgins wrote for CNBC Make It last week. “Artificial intelligence can be a great tool for making money, and certainly a lot better than selling flowers on the street corner,” he wrote.
This isn’t the first time people have worried that technology will replace humans. The rise of computers and the Internet has undoubtedly made jobs like typist and telephone operator obsolete. It makes it easier for other roles and creates new opportunities, such as website designers and content creators.
But the expansion of AI may still be a double-edged sword, as Tesla CEO Elon Musk told CNBC’s David Faber last month. For example, “if AI could do your job better than you,” you might have a hard time finding job fulfillment.
Part of the problem is that AI is developing so quickly that it’s impossible for anyone to accurately predict what its future will look like. If companies don’t adapt at a similar pace, they risk being left behind, Chesky said.
“I worry about how fast it’s going and whether society is ready for that speed,” he said. “But I think from a creative standpoint … if you don’t want to be a part of it, you just have to worry because it’s a creative tool for you. A computer is a tool.”
Disclosure: CNBC owns the exclusive off-network cable rights to “Shark Tank,” with Mark Cuban serving as a panelist.
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