# Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt Says AI Could Eliminate Thousands of Jobs

By Sonny Jang

Canonical URL: https://www.tokenpost.com/news/people/38768
Published: 2026-10-23T06:42:24.000Z
Updated: 2026-10-23T06:42:24.000Z
Section: People

> He estimated a 10,000-employee company might have a couple thousand roles it no longer needs as AI takes on coordination work.

Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt said artificial intelligence could make thousands of corporate roles unnecessary, arguing that business AI systems may take over coordination work that has long consumed managers’ time.

Schmidt estimated that a company with 10,000 employees might have a couple thousand people it no longer needs. He said his own job as Google CEO involved long days of meetings: “My job is to sit in meetings 12 hours a day, five days a week, and I work on the weekend, too.” He estimated that schedule amounted to about 63 hours a week.

Schmidt said AI platforms could take on much of the work involved in coordinating plans and moving information among teams. That kind of work, he argued, can occupy employees who help keep a large organization connected behind the scenes.

Separately, Schmidt described a friend’s company that recently cut 20% of its workforce. The employees let go included people responsible for planning, coordination and moving information around the business.

Schmidt said employers should find legal and humane ways to transition workers whose roles become unnecessary. He added that companies would need inventors, salespeople, leaders and people who can talk to government.

Schmidt has also urged younger workers to adapt to AI. Speaking to University of Arizona graduates earlier this year, he encouraged them to take part in building the technology, even as some students booed when he began discussing it.