PwC: GenAI boosts worker value, wages, and productivity everywhere

Generative AI (genAI) is enhancing worker value and productivity, not replacing people — and that’s true even for roles that are vulnerable to automation, according to new new research by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).

Analysis by PwC of nearly 1 billion job ads throughout the world showed that genAI-exposed industries have tripled revenue per worker since 2022, proving genAI investments are paying off. Overall, the report showed that AI is transforming jobs, boosting productivity, wages, and skill demands, rather than causing widespread job losses.

The report flies in the face of comments by Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, who told Axios AI could wipe out half of all entry-level white-collar jobs — and spike unemployment to between 10% and 20% in the next one to five years. Anthropic also just made generally available a version of its Claude AI assistant (Claude Code) that can write, edit and debug code, making it nearly as good as a human developer. Known as “vibe coding,” the use of natural language to develop software is expected to boom over the next few years.

Last month, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said AI now writes up to 30% of the company’s code, and that’s expected to quickly increase.

A report from MIT Technology Review Insights found that 94% of business leaders now use genAI in software development, with 82% applying it in multiple stages — and 26% saying they used it in four or more.

“Software developers are evolving into strategic technology orchestrators who harness AI to drive unprecedented business value,” said Kye Mitchell, head of tech staffing firm Experis North America.

The impact of genAI on hiring has been stark, as companies grapple with cleaning, organizing, and sharing data stores for potential use by the technology. Demand for database architects skyrocketed, leaping 2312% in the past year, Mitchell said. Jobs for statisticians also rose sharply, up 382% in the same time frame.

“AI isn’t replacing jobs — it’s fundamentally redefining how work gets done,” she said. “The break point where technology truly displaces a position is when roughly 80% of tasks can be fully automated. We’re nowhere near that threshold for most roles. Instead, we’re seeing AI augment skillsets and make professionals more capable, faster, and able to focus on higher-value work.”

Not surprisingly, PwC also found AI use increasing across all industries, including traditionally low-tech ones like mining and agriculture. The firm also found that wages in AI-exposed sectors are rising twice as fast as in less-exposed sectors. Workers with AI skills earn a 56% wage premium, up from 25% last year.

And AI-driven changes to worker skills are accelerating, with a 66% faster shift in skill requirements in AI-exposed roles.

AI job postings continue to rise, despite a softer job market, showing persistent demand for talent. The information and communication sector leads AI skill demand, while construction and healthcare lag behind, PwC reported.

In the US, jobs with high AI exposure have seen a slowdown in job postings between 2019m and 2024, but greater skill evolution, highlighting how “AI reshapes roles more than it eliminates them,” PwC said.

Employers have continued to pursue skills-based hiring strategies over the past three or so years. About one-half of all April tech job postings did not specify a need for a four-year academic degree, according to CompTIA, a nonprofit trade association that issues professional IT certifications.

Jobs with high gen AI exposure in the US have seen a decrease in degree requirements, falling from 63% in 2019 to 53% in 2024. Jobs exposed to automation now require degrees less often today (41%) than they did in 2019 (56%).

While degree requirements in white collar job listings have markedly decreased over the last several years, the shift toward more AI-based job roles has affected employment – especially in IT-related positions. In April, the tech industry lost 214,000 positions as companies shifted toward AI roles and skills-based hiring amid economic uncertainty, according to an evaluation of the US Bureau of Labor Statistic’s latest jobs report.