OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently came up with a controversial perspective on the widespread anxiety surrounding job displacement by AI. In a public interview, Altman suggested that many professions, which were being eliminated or transformed by the technology, may not qualify as “real work” when viewed across several eras.

Speaking at the company’s recent DevDay conference, Altman addressed the concern about AI potentially erasing hundreds of millions of knowledge-worker jobs even before new roles are created. To frame his view, he used a historical analogy, asking the audience to consider the perspective of a farmer from half a century ago.

Altman argued that a farmer, whose job of producing food and sustaining life is essential, would likely look at many of today’s modern, non-physical

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