Routine jobs will be lost as new tech gains ground: Narayana Murthy

Infosys founder N R Narayana Murthy said AI and other new technologies will eliminate routine work, but productivity gains can create jobs if workers learn to use and master these tools

Routine jobs across the industry are expected to be eliminated as the use of new technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), gains ground in India, Infosys founder N R Narayana Murthy said on Monday.

 

Emerging technologies like AI are expected to introduce better productivity to workplaces and their assisted use will allow companies to further expand, he explained.  

 

Such technologies could improve career prospects and generate additional jobs in the country, provided the workforce acquires the necessary skills to master them, he added.

 

“The key thing we Indians have to accept is that whenever we use a new technology, some routine job(s) will be lost. But as long as we use those technologies in an assistive manner, your corporation will grow. Your work productivity will improve,” Murthy said. He was speaking at The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)-Bombay’s Techfest.

 

His remarks come amid widespread concerns that AI-led automation could reduce workforce requirements and replace jobs across industries.

 

“The point is that… the technology which we provide, will help the corporation grow, and that growth will bring better prospects to employees, it will create more and more jobs, as long as you become the master of that technology,” he added.

 

Citing the example of India’s banking sector, Murthy noted that the adoption of technology to scale core banking systems from the 1980s led to a significant expansion of the sector.

 

He said that when core banking solutions were automated in the United Kingdom in the 1970s, trade unions initially opposed the move, but sustained dialogue among researchers, industry and unions eventually helped them recognise the benefits of the new technology.

 

“...By automating core banking activities, one could go home on time, because those days, people were unable to close the book even at 10pm,” he added.