The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned that Artificial Intelligence (AI) could affect about 40 per cent of jobs globally, urging governments to introduce policy reforms and prepare workers for changes in the labour market.
The IMF Managing Director, Kristalina Georgieva, gave the warning during a panel session titled “Small Scale AI: More and Better Jobs” at the 2026 IMF/World Bank Annual Meetings in Bangkok, Thailand, on Monday, October 12.
Georgieva described AI as a “slow-moving tsunami” that could transform employment by augmenting workers’ capabilities, reducing the value of some roles or eliminating certain jobs entirely.
According to her, IMF estimates indicate that AI could affect about 60 per cent of jobs in advanced economies, compared with 23 per cent in low-income countries.
She explained that the lower exposure in low-income countries reflected the slower adoption of AI rather than greater protection from its effects.
Georgieva noted that AI was already stimulating investment and economic activity in some countries through the construction of data centres and the development of AI models.
She identified the United States, China and India as major AI-producing economies, while several Asian countries, including Thailand, were contributing to the infrastructure supporting the technology.
According to the IMF chief, these investments were helping sustain global economic growth at about three per cent despite the drag from energy supply shocks.
She, however, said the next phase of AI development would depend largely on adoption, creating opportunities for more countries to benefit if they established the necessary foundations.
Georgieva said developing economies needed reliable electricity, digital infrastructure, appropriate skills and effective government safeguards to ensure safe and inclusive AI adoption.
She cited IMF estimates showing that AI could raise growth in advanced Asian economies by between 0.5 and one percentage point, while emerging Asian economies could record additional growth of between 0.2 and 0.8 percentage points.
She added that an additional one percentage point of growth could more than offset economic losses associated with rapidly ageing populations in advanced Asian economies.
On employment, Georgieva cited an IMF study in the United States indicating that about 10 per cent of jobs already required advanced AI skills, with such positions generally attracting higher pay.
She said routine and repetitive jobs were declining, while lower-paying jobs were increasing in areas such as data centre construction