AI-driven layoffs near half a million as ILO warns one in four jobs at risk

Job loss data

The global workforce has shed nearly half a million positions to AI in three years. The tracker ailayoffs.live records 425,000 layoffs directly or indirectly attributed to AI, including 142,000 in Europe. This data, cited by Consumers' Forum, underscores an accelerating shift.

At-risk occupations

According to the International Labour Organization, 25% of global employment falls into occupations highly exposed to AI automation. In high-income economies that share rises to 34%. The roles most threatened involve repetitive and digital tasks: administrative support, customer care, call center operations, bank and postal clerks, cashiers, and translators.

Contrasting outlooks

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos rejects the alarm.

People are jumping to the conclusion that jobs will disappear. But I think they are wrong.

He told the Financial Times he expects a "golden age" from AI. However, institutional voices remain cautious: Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Pope Leo XIV, and Bank of Italy Governor Fabio Panetta have all voiced concerns about how societies will manage this transition.

Italy's AI boom

The Italian AI market has grown to €1.8 billion, a 50% increase from 2024, according to Consumers' Forum. Meanwhile, demand for AI skills in the job market is surging: a Politecnico di Milano study found that in 2025, the number of job advertisements requiring AI competencies jumped by 93% in Italy.

Environmental footprint

The International Energy Agency projects that global electricity consumption by data centers will double by 2030, from 415 terawatt-hours in 2024 to 945 TWh (3% of all global electricity). AI data centers already contribute between 2.5% and 3.7% of worldwide greenhouse gas emissions, and that figure is set to rise. Consumers' Forum plans to discuss these challenges next week in Brussels with MEP Brando Benifei, rapporteur for the EU's AI Act.