AI Layoffs: Will AI Replace Your Job? How to Future-Proof Your Career Now
AI Layoffs: Will AI Replace Your Job? How to Future-Proof Your Career Now
In 2023, 37% of business leaders reported that AI had already replaced workers in their organizations
(Pratt, 2023).
Which Jobs Have Already been Replaced by AI and/or Automation?
AI and automation have already replaced or significantly transformed a variety of jobs, particularly entry-level or junior roles such as:
Copywriting, News Writing, and Basic Journalism
Photo Editing
Graphic/UX Design
Animation
Curriculum Development
Research
Social Media Management and Content Creation
Financial Analysis
Website/App Development
Proofreading/Editing
Data Entry, Data Scraping
Invoicing/Billing
Insurance Underwriting
Reception/Administration
Transcription, Translation
Entry-Level Coding / Software Engineering
Basic QA Testing
Call Centers/Helpdesks/Customer Service
Bookkeeping
Basic Tax Preparation
Paralegals and Basic Legal Work (e.g., contract writing)
Cashiers
Inventory Managers
HR/Generalists
Looking ahead, even more roles are at risk as technology continues to advance such as:
Radiology
Taxi, Uber, and Truck Driving
Tutoring
Video Editing
Consulting
Junior/Mid-Level Software Engineers
Data analysts and Data Scientists
IT Support
Marketing Management
Real Estate Agents
Low-mid Price Point Sales
Actors and Musicians
AI was responsible for ~3,900 job losses in a single month—about 5% of all layoffs in May 2025 (CBS).
Who is disproportionately Impacted by AI?
AI is disproportionately impacting workers who are already vulnerable to labor market instability and systemic inequities. Certain groups are being affected earlier and more deeply by AI-driven job displacement and disruption:
BIPOC workers are overrepresented in routine, lower-paid roles such as cashiers, call center agents, warehouse workers, and data entry jobs that are among the first to be automated. In the U.S., for instance, Black workers make up 12% of the total workforce but account for 22% of the data entry workforce, a sector already heavily automated.
Entry-level workers and recent graduates face a challenging landscape as AI replaces many entry-level jobs like junior coding, customer support, social media management, and basic data analysis. Without early career experience, it becomes harder to build résumés and develop professionally.
Workers without college degrees often find employment in manual, clerical, or rule-based jobs, prime targets for automation. As these roles disappear, the barriers to re-entry or upskilling grow steeper.
Women, particularly mothers and part-time workers, are at elevated risk, yet often overlooked in AI policy discussions. They are disproportionately represented in administrative, clerical, and healthcare support roles (e.g., receptionists, transcriptionists, office assistants), which are highly vulnerable to automation. Women of color are especially concentrated in these sectors. Globally, over 70% of data entry jobs are held by women—roles rapidly being eliminated by AI.
Parents (of any gender) often rely on flexible, lower-skill jobs like virtual assistance, remote customer service, or scheduling support—many of which are among the first to be automated. These roles typically lack training pathways, making career pivots more difficult.
Immigrants and non-native English speakers frequently work in customer service, hospitality, and logistics—industries increasingly replaced by kiosks, chatbots, and self-checkout systems.
Mid-career workers without tech fluency are also at risk. Many hold roles in bookkeeping, compliance, or inventory management—tasks vulnerable to automation—but often lack access to retraining or digital skill development. They are also less likely than younger employees to be offered upskilling opportunities by employers.
Some people with disabilities may be particularly affected, as they often rely on jobs with predictable tasks or remote admin roles—both targets of early-stage automation.
29% of work tasks are considered replaceable by AI (Pratt, 2023).
Which Jobs Are AI-Proof?
While no job or group is 100% immune to AI’s influence, there are certain roles and sectors that are much less likely to be replaced or deeply disrupted, at least in the near- to mid-term (next 10–15 years). Jobs that are the least likely to be replaced by AI are those that require physical human presence, original thinking, ethical decisions/gray areas, or depend on trust/persuasion, such as:
Psychologists, therapists, and social workers (although entry level triage and basic emotion analysis tools are able to handle many low-risk client interactions)
Teachers (particularly early childhood education & special ed)
Nannies and Daycare Workers
Electricians, Plumbers, HVAC techs
Construction Workers
Mechanics
Judges/Arbitrators/Senior Legal Counsel
Healthcare Providers (e.g., doctors, nurses)
Executive Leadership (C-suite)
Creative Directors
Brand strategists
B2B or Consultative Sales
By 2030, about 30% of current U.S. jobs could be fully automated and 60% may see substantial task changes (National University)
What New Roles will be Created by AI?
While AI is displacing many traditional roles, it's also creating a wave of new jobs centered around human-AI collaboration, oversight, and design. These emerging roles often blend technical fluency with creativity, ethics, or strategic thinking. For example, AI Trainers or Prompt Engineers help fine-tune AI systems by feeding them nuanced data and crafting queries for optimal results. AI Ethicists ensure technologies are developed and deployed responsibly, especially in areas like hiring, healthcare, and finance. Human-AI Interaction Designers work to improve the user experience in AI-powered tools, while AI Literacy Educators train staff across sectors to effectively integrate AI into their daily workflows. Other new roles include Synthetic Data Analysts (who generate and manage artificial data for model training), Algorithm Bias Auditors, and AI Project Managers who oversee cross-functional teams deploying AI tools. These positions will demand a hybrid skill set, combining technical understanding, human judgment, and cross-disciplinary insight, and they reflect a broader shift: rather than replacing people, AI is reshaping how we work, opening space for more strategic, supervisory, and creative human contributions.
96% of Companies Will Be Looking for Workers With AI Skills (Pratt, 2023)
AI-Poof Your Career: Career Planning Strategy in the Face of AI
With rapid advancements in AI, all workers must take a proactive, approach to career planning. This includes assessing your current level of AI fluency, identifying skill gaps, and seeking targeted training to help yourself to integrate AI tools into your daily workflow. The goal is to empower yourself to partner with AI and use it to enhance your own productivity, ethically to reduce errors, and elevate the quality of your work. At the same time, you need to be aware of the structural shifts in workforce needs, recognizing that even highly trained, AI-fluent teams may ultimately require fewer people. A forward-thinking career planning strategy should include AI fluency and career safety net planning as core components, ensuring that your are not only prepared for internal transitions, but also equipped to compete in an evolving external job market.
85 million jobs will be lost by 2025 due to AI, but with +97 million new roles created
(World Economic Forum).
Want an AI-Proof Career?
At Wanderlust Careers, our expert Career Coaches help you assess your AI fluency, identify upskilling opportunities, and create a data-driven career plan built for the future of work. Don’t wait for change—get ahead of it. Book a Complimentary Career Consultation today and build a resilient, AI-proof career plan.