OpenAI Urges Four-Day Week Trial to Navigate AI Era
In a significant proposal, OpenAI suggests that companies consider trialling a four-day working week, alongside other enhanced employee benefits, to prepare for the transformative impact of artificial intelligence. The company's 'Industrial Policy for the Intelligence Age' report highlights that rapid advancements in AI will reshape how organisations operate and how individuals find meaning in their careers.
Adapting to AI’s Influence
OpenAI's recommendations, primarily aimed at the US, are intended to spark discussion on necessary actions as AI systems grow more capable. The firm believes that if progress continues, AI will soon be able to complete projects that currently take humans months. To prepare for this shift, businesses should be incentivised to implement durable improvements in workers' benefits, such as piloting four-day work weeks with no loss of pay, increasing retirement contributions, covering more healthcare costs, and subsidising childcare.
These suggestions arrive amidst warnings from figures like Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey, who has drawn parallels between potential AI-driven job displacement and the Industrial Revolution. However, some economists, including Adam Slater from Oxford Economics, caution that the transformative effects of AI on jobs, productivity, and the economy might be overstated and could take decades to materialise.
OpenAI's policy ideas echo those from rival firm Anthropic, which previously advocated for equipping workers with new skills and revising planning processes to accommodate increased energy and computing infrastructure for AI development. While tech companies push ahead with advanced AI, they also acknowledge its potential for societal disruption, prompting these proactive policy discussions.
