As the global debate around artificial intelligence and job security intensifies, Zoho founder Sridhar Vembu has offered a counter-narrative: AI may take over some work, but not all. In a widely read post on X (formerly Twitter), Vembu reassured that humans will still have plenty to do—even in a world driven by automation.
“We are nowhere close to AI taking over all software development jobs,” Vembu stated, highlighting that the threat of complete automation is still far from reality.
Two Possible Outcomes in a Fully Automated Economy
Vembu’s post explored a hypothetical future where automation reaches its peak and software engineers, like himself, are out of jobs. He argued that even in such a scenario, the issue wouldn’t be the lack of work—but rather, how people afford goods and services.
He outlined two economic outcomes:
Free or Ultra-Cheap Goods:
If robots and AI take over all production, the cost of goods could fall drastically. “The price of all the robot-made goods and all the AI-made and AI-supported software would drop massively,” he wrote. He compared it to air, which costs nothing but is essential.
Rise in Value of Human-Centric Roles:
With basic goods nearly free, roles like childcare, nursing, farming, music, and environmental restoration would become more valuable. “The remaining things humans do may get paid well,” Vembu suggested. “Taking care of soil, water, crop and cattle health… we used to call them farmers.”
A Distribution, Not a Technology Problem
At the heart of the issue, Vembu believes, is political economy—not technology. He emphasized that equitable wealth and income distribution will be key.
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“This is fundamentally an economic distribution problem… One key part is for governments to crack down on monopolies, particularly tech monopolies,” he wrote.
Doing so, he argued, would ensure that the ultra-low cost of AI-powered production actually benefits everyone.
One Country Will Get It Right, Says Vembu
Vembu concluded optimistically, suggesting that at least one nation will manage this transformation well. “There will be at least one country in the world that would get the political economy right,” he noted.
He even submitted his AI-employment thoughts to Google Gemini for deeper analysis. Sharing the link on X, he said the AI tool added important nuances like the cost of energy, which will remain a key factor in the future of automation.
