Bernie Sanders warns AI could create “doomsday scenario” for workers

Senator Bernie Sanders has issued a stark warning about artificial intelligence’s impact on workers, describing a potential “doomsday scenario” where AI technology could eventually control humanity rather than serve it. In a recent interview with Gizmodo, the Vermont legislator argued that AI’s effects on the labor market could be “a lot more severe” than the Industrial Revolution, with benefits flowing primarily to corporations and tech companies while workers face massive job losses.

What you should know: Sanders has been consulting with AI experts and CEOs following his proposal for AI to help establish a four-day work week, finding them split on the technology’s labor implications.

• One group of experts warns there “will be massive job losses,” while others insist new jobs will emerge to replace those eliminated by automation.
• The senator believes AI is already accelerating the longstanding gap between rising worker productivity and stagnant wages for those same workers.

The big picture: Sanders views AI as fundamentally different from previous technological revolutions in its potential severity and scope.

• “I happen to believe this is not like the Industrial Revolution,” Sanders told Gizmodo. “I think this could be a lot more severe.”
• He emphasized that “AI is neither good nor bad” but warned it’s also “not science fiction” given its rapid real-world deployment.

Why this matters: The senator’s concerns center on ensuring AI benefits workers rather than just enriching those at the top of the economic hierarchy.

• “Workers today… are earning less, and I fear very much that almost all the new benefits of worker productivity will go to the people on top at the expense of working people,” Sanders explained.
• Without political intervention, he believes “the benefits are going to accrue to the people on top at the expense of working people.”

The doomsday scenario: Sanders warned of a future where humans lose control over AI technology entirely.

• “There are very, very knowledgeable people… who worry very much that human beings will not be able to control the technology,” he said.
• He described concerns that “artificial intelligence will in fact dominate our society” and that “we will not be able to control” the technology, with it potentially controlling humanity instead.
• “That’s kind of the doomsday scenario,” Sanders concluded, “and there is some concern about that among very knowledgeable people in the industry.”

What sets Sanders apart: Unlike many politicians who remain largely silent on AI policy, Sanders plans to actively hold tech CEOs accountable for preventing mass unemployment.

• His approach combines his longstanding workers’ rights advocacy with specific focus on AI’s labor market impacts.
• The senator’s willingness to directly confront tech industry leaders distinguishes him from the “collective shoulder-shrug” response from most politicians on AI issues.