AI could soon replace white-collar workers: Microsoft exec
Mustafa Suleyman, Microsoft's AI CEO, thinks artificial intelligence is about to change the game for white-collar workers.
In his words, "most of these tasks will be fully automated by AI within the next 12 to 18 months," calling out jobs like lawyers, accountants, project managers, and marketers as especially at risk.
Suleyman envisions a future where AI models are easily accessible
Suleyman says building custom AI models for companies will soon be as easy as making a podcast or writing a blog post.
He expects this within the next two to three years (from February 2026, i.e., roughly Feb 2028-Feb 2029), saying smart AI agents will handle complex workflows and help organizations run smoother than ever.
Suleyman has a history of making bold predictions
Suleyman co-founded DeepMind (which Google later bought), was head of applied AI at DeepMind — the source does not state when he left DeepMind — and then started Inflection AI before joining Microsoft — the source does not state when he joined Microsoft.
He's known for bold predictions—like warning that unchecked AI could threaten humanity and suggesting that automation could significantly affect coding jobs.