If you have grown accustomed to working from home, you need to read this. In a stark warning about the future of work, Shane Legg, co-founder and Chief AGI Scientist at Google DeepMind, has predicted that advancing artificial intelligence will effectively end remote jobs and work-from-home arrangements as we know them.
Legg, speaking in a recent interview with Professor Hannah Fry, argued that AI’s rapid progress toward human-level intelligence will disproportionately impact jobs that can be performed entirely online using cognitive skills.
AI to end remote work
“Jobs that are purely cognitive and done remotely via a computer are particularly vulnerable,” Legg explained. He highlighted that companies will likely reduce distributed teams as AI tools allow smaller groups to achieve the same—or better—results. For instance, in software engineering, Legg suggested that teams of 100 engineers could shrink to just 20 with the aid of advanced AI, leading to fewer roles overall, especially entry-level and remote positions.
According to Legg, the disruption will be uneven across industries. Digital-heavy roles—those relying on language, knowledge, coding, mathematics, and complex problem-solving—are set to be hit first. AI systems are already surpassing humans in areas like language processing and general knowledge, with significant improvements expected soon in reasoning, visual understanding, and continual learning. In contrast, physical jobs requiring hands-on work, such as plumbing or construction, may remain protected longer due to the challenges of automating real-world tasks.
Legg warned that AI could fundamentally alter the economy by outperforming humans in cognitive labor, making it cheaper and more efficient for machines to handle such work. This shift risks invalidating the current system where people exchange mental effort for income, potentially leaving many without traditional employment. He compared ignoring these trends to dismissing early warnings about global challenges, urging society to prepare now.
A Potential Golden Age Amid Disruption
Despite the grim outlook for certain jobs, Legg remained optimistic about AI’s overall potential. He described the technology as ushering in a “golden age” of productivity, scientific breakthroughs, and economic growth. The key challenge, he noted, lies in distributing the resulting wealth equitably to ensure people retain purpose and stability during the transition. Legg emphasized that these changes won’t occur overnight but will accelerate as AI reaches professional-level capabilities in knowledge work.
