Periods of great change pose serious challenges to both companies and people. The accelerated adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to be one of the biggest transformations in markets since the internet.
To navigate through periods of creative disruption, businesses must remain agile, resilient and invest in the people, innovation, and tools that protect and drive long-term value. At the same time, people will need support from businesses and policy makers to keep pace with change.
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AI and the future of the labour market
Assessing how AI will displace jobs isn’t easy – it’ll depend on the degree of integration in the wider economy. So, as adoption deepens, it’s likely that job displacements will also rise, with some data estimating displacements peak at around 60,000 to 275,000 per year.
Some sectors will have higher exposure to this disruption. The automation and robotisation of tasks have the potential to affect jobs in industries like transport, manufacturing, healthcare, finance and customer service.
These shocks to the labour market rhyme closely with the rise of personal computing and the internet. Between 1980 and 2018, around 3.5 million jobs were lost in the US because of the internet. However, due to strong growth in emerging industries like computer hardware, semiconductors, software, apps, computer science, services and call centres, it’s estimated over 19 million jobs were created over the same period.
While it’s crucial for workers to be protected from change, they must also be supported to help shape an emerging, high-value labour market. Currently, wages are rising twice as fast in the industries most exposed to AI-disruption. Those jobs are also changing 66% faster than others.
There’s also broader potential benefits to society. It’s estimated that national income in the UK could rise between 5% and 14% by 2050 due to the growth fuelled by AI-driven productivity.
If AI is to integrate as deeply as many think, it’ll be essential for national policy to support its development to keep pace with the rest of the world, unlocking growth for both companies and people. But only those companies most agile and innovative will stand to benefit.
Two companies on the front foot
Uber – preparing for a driverless future
Uber built its business on disruption, and now it’s navigating another wave - AI-driven automation. The company’s strategy is to stay asset-light while securing a foothold in the driverless future.
Partnerships are central to this. Uber has invested in UK-based Wayve, which is testing self-driving cars in London, and it also works with larger players like Waymo to ensure it has multiple paths to autonomy.
This shift won’t happen overnight. Experts expect meaningful progress in the next few years, but scaling fleets will take time. For Uber, that means balancing today’s profitability with tomorrow’s bets.
By some estimates, capital spending is expected to rise toward $1bn by 2028 to fund trials and infrastructure. That comes as Uber is on a path to return roughly half of its growing free cash flows to shareholders - a delicate balancing act.
The human impact is significant.
Millions of Uber drivers won’t disappear immediately, but roles will evolve. Future demand could shift toward fleet maintenance, remote monitoring, and customer support. Upskilling programs will be key to smoothing this transition.
The core business remains strong – bookings are growing, while delivery continues to improve. The automation story, however, is the wildcard.
If Uber can prove the model without overextending its balance sheet, it could cement its role as the go-to platform in a driverless world. Miss that turn, and the disruptor risks being disrupted.
JPMorgan – banking giant looks to AI
JPMorgan, the world’s largest bank by market cap, is in the midst of a sweeping AI transformation. Management’s ambition is to become a leader in the AI-powered financial world. Part of that is the $18bn tech budget, with a heavy tilt toward AI and automation to boost productivity and streamline operations.
Its proprietary platform, LLM Suite, already uses models from OpenAI and Anthropic to handle complex tasks - think generating investment banking decks in seconds. The strategy is bold – embed AI across every business line, automate back-office processes, and deliver client experiences curated by AI agents.
But it comes with trade-offs.
JPMorgan expects AI to drive a 10% reduction in headcount over the next five years, even as it re-trains staff for higher-value roles. The bank is also funding workforce programs, from apprenticeships to AI literacy initiatives, to prepare employees for the new reality.
For investors, it’s hard to back against a bank that’s gone from strength to strength over the past decade and management argues the payoff will come through operating leverage and new revenue streams. In the longer term, if well executed, AI could cement JPMorgan’s leadership in financial services.
This is a high-quality name, but markets have already rewarded the stock for recent performance. We think near-term upside is a little limited from here and there are no guarantees.
More broadly, the banking and financial services sectors are ripe for innovation, and investors would do well to pay attention to how their businesses plan to take advantage.
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This article is original Hargreaves Lansdown content, published by Hargreaves Lansdown. It was correct as at the date of publication, and our views may have changed since then. Unless otherwise stated estimates, including prospective yields, are a consensus of analyst forecasts provided by LSEG. These estimates are not a reliable indicator of future performance. Past performance is not a guide to the future. Investments rise and fall in value so investors could make a loss. Yields are variable and not guaranteed.
This article is not advice or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any investment. No view is given on the present or future value or price of any investment, and investors should form their own view on any proposed investment.
