Uber CEO says other execs are lying about AI: 'They say it'll be fine' but privately admit millions of jobs are gone

Rudro ChakrabartiTue, April 21, 2026 at 12:05 PM UTC

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Dara Khosrowshahi joins a number of tech CEOs signaling more AI layoffs are on the way.

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Most tech CEOs say the same thing when someone asks about AI and jobs: productivity will go up, new roles will be created, society always adapts.

Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO of Uber (NYSE:UBER), isn't doing that.

In a recent interview on The Diary of a CEO (1), when host Steven Bartlett raised the dissonance between what tech leaders say publicly about AI and what they admit behind closed doors, the Uber chief executive didn't push back. He agreed and went further.

Khosrowshahi said he's heard private conversations among executives about the "sheer amount of disruption" they expect from AI, then watched those same people appear on CNBC or at Davos and tell audiences everything would work out fine.

"I understand the incentive," Khosrowshahi said, noting that being too candid about job displacement could spook investors and fundraising.

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Khosrowshahi didn't soften his own numbers. He estimated that AI will be able to replace the work that 70 to 80% of humans do, with intellectual jobs falling within 10 years and physical roles like driving, logistics and robotics within 15 to 20. He's not speaking hypothetically about his own workforce, either. Uber has 9.5 million drivers and couriers on its platform, the largest flexible labor network in the world. Khosrowshahi acknowledged that the majority of those trips will eventually be fulfilled by autonomous vehicles and when asked what those 9 million people do next, said: "I don't know."

AI layoffs are already here in 2026

The early data is already stacking up.

Block CEO Jack Dorsey cut roughly 4,000 jobs in February — nearly 40% of his company's workforce — in one of the largest AI-attributed layoffs in tech history (2). Dorsey didn't dress it up: AI tools, he said, have "fundamentally changed what it means to build and run a company."

He's far from alone. Atlassian slashed 1,600 roles citing the "AI era" (3). Meta is reportedly planning cuts of up to 20%, potentially more than 15,000 workers, partly to offset massive AI infrastructure spending, though the company has called the reporting speculative (4).

Crypto.com, eBay, Pinterest and even law firm Baker McKenzie have all pointed to AI in recent reduction announcements (2, 5). The numbers at the macro level are hard to wave away. In 2025, companies cited AI in 55,000 job cuts, 12 times the figure from just two years prior, according to outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas (6). Another 12,000 AI-linked cuts have already been announced in 2026. And Goldman Sachs Research puts the baseline displacement estimate at 6 to 7% of the entire U.S. workforce if AI is widely adopted (7), with young tech workers between 20 and 30 already seeing unemployment climb by roughly 3 percentage points (8).

Some economists remain skeptical. Oxford Economics has suggested that certain companies are using AI as cover, "dressing up layoffs as a good news story" rather than admitting to post-pandemic overcorrection. That's probably true in some cases. But even the skeptics aren't arguing that AI isn't transforming the labor market. They're arguing about how fast.

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Khosrowshahi might actually be underselling the timeline

But even Khosrowshahi's timeline might be too generous.

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei warned last year that AI could wipe out half of all entry-level white-collar jobs within five years, pushing unemployment as high as 10 to 20% (9).

Prominent AI investor Kai-Fu Lee has called similar predictions of 50% displacement by 2027 "uncannily accurate" (10). An MIT study found that 11.7% of U.S. jobs could be automated using AI that exists right now — not some future version of the technology (11).

The World Economic Forum's latest projections land somewhere in the middle: 92 million jobs displaced globally by 2030, offset by an estimated 170 million new ones (12). But that optimistic math depends on retraining programs that, so far, don't exist at scale in any country. Khosrowshahi made this point himself — and added that the universal basic income experiments conducted so far have produced worse outcomes for recipients, not better.

Goldman's own data tells a similar story. A recent survey of the firm's investment bankers found that while only 11% of clients were currently cutting staff because of AI, expected headcount reductions over the next three years were rising fast enough that "AI impacts on the U.S. labor market could arrive sooner than expected" (13).

Worried about being laid off? Shockproof your finances now

With experts around the world sounding the alarm, the idea of AI replacing jobs is starting to feel less like science fiction and more like a workplace reality. Shoring up your finances now can help keep a sudden layoff from throwing your long-term plans off track.

Pay down debt

Carrying high-interest debt or a large credit card balance can weigh on your finances even in the best of times — but it can hit much harder if you suddenly lose your paycheck.

The average American had about $6,715 in credit card debt as of December 2025. And with the average interest rate on accounts carrying a balance sitting at 22.30% as of late 2025, that debt can get expensive fast (14).

When rates are that high, much of your monthly payment goes toward interest rather than reducing the balance. Without a paycheck, those bills can start to bite fast.

You can consider consolidating your high-interest debt into a single payment through a personal loan at a lower interest rate (ideally). This way, you don’t have to juggle multiple payments.

Lending marketplaces like Upstart can match you with a personal loan offer in minutes.

Instead of relying solely on credit scores, Upstart’s AI-powered platform looks at various factors — including income, education and employment — to give you offers that may be better suited for your individual situation.

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Applying is fast and simple. Just submit a few personal and financial details and get an instant decision from Upstart’s AI-powered platform. Once approved, your loan is funded by a trusted bank or credit union partner, often as soon as the next business day.

Create an emergency fund

Losing a paycheck can quickly turn everyday bills into a source of stress. That’s where an emergency fund comes in. If layoffs hit your workplace, having cash readily available can help you stay afloat without relying on credit cards or loans.

Financial experts typically recommend keeping three to six months’ worth of expenses in an emergency fund. And storing them in a high-yield account can help you earn interest on these savings — making your money work harder for you.

A high-yield account like a Wealthfront Cash Account can be a great place to grow your uninvested cash, offering both competitive interest rates and easy access to your money when you need it.

A Wealthfront Cash Account currently offers a base APY of 3.30% through program banks, and new clients can get an extra 0.75% boost during their first three months on up to $150,000 for a total variable APY of 4.05%.

That’s ten times the national deposit savings rate, according to the FDIC’s March report.

Additionally, Wealthfront is offering new clients who enable direct deposit ($1,000/mo minimum) to their Cash Account and open and fund a new investment account an additional 0.25% APY increase with no expiration date or balance limit, meaning your APY could be as high as 4.30%.

With no minimum balances or account fees, as well as 24/7 withdrawals and free domestic wire transfers, your funds remain accessible at all times. Plus, you get access to up to $8M FDIC Insurance eligibility through program banks.

Lower your fixed expenses

Another way to prepare for a potential layoff is by trimming your fixed expenses — the bills that show up every month, whether you like it or not. The lower your baseline costs, the easier it becomes to stretch your savings if your income suddenly stops.

Insurance is one place many people unknowingly overspend. Car insurance premiums alone have climbed roughly 55% between February 2020 and late 2025, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data analyzed by NPR (15). Shopping around for better rates or adjusting your coverage could free up extra cash each month.

you can easily shop around and compare quotes offered by reputable insurance providers through Insurify. By comparing quotes and selecting the best deal, customers could see average potential savings of $1,100.

Just answer a few basic questions, and Insurify will show you the most affordable deals in as little as 3 minutes.

Not only is the process 100% free, but you could also save up to 15% by bundling your car and home insurance.

And for homeowners, OfficialHomeInsurance lets you compare rates and features on home insurance policies from top providers near you.

Here’s how it works: Answer a few basic questions about yourself and your home, and OfficialHomeInsurance will comb through its database of over 200 insurers to display the lowest rates available. On average, you could save $482 per year by comparing rates.

The best part? This process is entirely free, and it takes just two minutes.

Create a secondary source of income

Relying on a single paycheck can be risky in an uncertain job market. Creating a secondary source of income — especially one that doesn’t depend on your day job — could help cover at least part of your monthly expenses.

You can earn passive rental income by investing in prime real estate around the country. And thanks to crowdfunding platforms like Arrived, you can get started with as little as $100 — without worrying about monthly mortgage payments, maintenance, or tenant management.

Backed by world-class investors like Jeff Bezos, Arrived allows you to invest in shares of vacation and rental properties.

Arrived distributes any rental income generated by properties to investors monthly, allowing you to potentially set up a passive income stream without the extra work that comes with being a landlord of your own rental property.

Even better, for a limited time, when you open an account and add $1,000 or more, Arrived will credit your account with a 1% match.

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Article sources

We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our editorial ethics and guidelines.

The Diary of a CEO (1); CBS News (2); CNBC (3), (4), (5), (8); Challenger, Gray & Christmas (6); Goldman Sachs Research (7); Axios (9); Fortune (10), (13); MIT (11); World Economic Forum (12); Forbes (14); NPR (15)

This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.

Original Article on Source

Source: “AOL Money”