On August 20, Bloomberg broke a story that should have caused concern in the media world: “Fed Confronts Up to a Million US Jobs Vanishing in Revision.” The government’s official report was due on Wednesday. Still, the mainstream media chose to ignore the story for 48 hours.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) releases regular job reports to provide a comprehensive overview of the U.S. labor market. These reports include data on the total number of jobs added or lost in the economy, the unemployment rate, the labor force participation rate, average wages and earnings, and the average number of hours worked per week by employees. The well-researched and compiled reports are eagerly awaited by policymakers, businesses, and analysts, who get a summary view of labor market trends. Wall-to-wall coverage by the media distributes the news to the retail market as average consumers digest the government’s view about the economy.
BLS often revises published data if it finds that the initial reports are inaccurate or the statistical techniques employed need to be corrected. These revisions are routine in maintaining the accuracy and reliability of economic data, ensuring that users have the most up-to-date and precise information for analysis and decision-making.
When BLS released its official report on Wednesday, it was shocking. Monthly payroll figures overstated job growth by roughly 818,000 in the 12 months that ended in March. Employers added about 174,000 jobs per month during that period, down from the previously reported pace of about 242,000 jobs—a downward revision of about 28 percent, amounting to 68,000 fewer jobs added each month, a significant hit to the economy.
But what was causing the loss of jobs? Could advances in Artificial Intelligence (AI) be triggering it? This is a serious matter that deserves scrutiny, but thus far, the media has shown callous disinterest in covering the AI angle.
For clues, we searched X, a site where people post their personal experiences without fear of being suspended or canceled, like during the old Twitter regime.
An X user, ClassifiedCoach, an advanced software engineer and self-described hacker, posted that he had been actively looking for a new tech job. He had sent over 250 applications to the so-called FAANG tier companies—top tech companies such as Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Google – and had received no interviews.
Frustrated, ClassifiedCoach protested in the only way software engineers know how—by hacking. His target was Leetcode, a website popular with students and software professionals looking for practice problems to solve before job interviews. Leetcode says its websitehas over 3,450 software problems, so job seekers can improve their skills and prepare better for technical interviews.
Using Claude’s 3.5 Sonnet API, a large language AI model from Anthropic, a competitor to ChatGPT, ClassifiedCoach wrote an AI script to automate Leetcode.
The results were astonishing. In less than 24 hours, the AI script solved 633 software problems on the Leetcode website fully autonomously—that is, without human intervention. The output was detailed code that was well-written to meet the latest software engineering standards. Because ClassifiedCoach’s A.I. query required significant computing power, he had to spend $9 in AI credits to run it.
A venture capitalist and former Google Engineer, Deedy Das, reposted ClassifiedCoach’s original post with a comment, “AI can get that $500K FAANG job for less than $10.” The repost attracted 281,000 views, mainly within the tech community.
Software developers are legitimately scared that AI can take over their jobs. If a brilliant programmer like ClassifiedCoach couldn’t land a single interview after applying to the top 250 tech companies, what luck would an ordinary software engineer have?
We already know that A.I. has dramatically impacted the hiring market for customer service representatives, as AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants are handling routine inquiries and support tasks. These systems can manage a high volume of requests, provide 24/7 support, and resolve common issues without human intervention, reducing the need for traditional customer service roles. For those remaining in the industry, AI innovations such as intelligent call routing, where systems use machine learning algorithms to route calls to the most suitable agent, help lower worker stress. As first-call resolution rates improve, customers spend less time on hold, and the need to transfer calls between agents diminishes.
Workers in relatively mechanical tasks, such as data entry clerks, are also seeing that their jobs are at risk as AI can extract data, categorize it, and enter it into databases more quickly and accurately.
The Brookings Institution released a report in July titled “AI’s impact on income inequality in the U.S.,” which highlighted an inconvenient truth: High-skilled, high-income workers are most likely to benefit from AI in the short term. Studies in 2023 by MIT, the Harvard Business Review, the Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), and the International Journal of Information Management (2023) all point to AI’s dual impact on the tech workforce: while AI leads to displacement in certain job areas, it also creates new opportunities and demands for advanced skills, developing, managing, and maintaining AI systems.
As we see from ClassifiedCoach’s X post above, these scholarly conclusions are way off. While new positions are being created, they are not being added quickly enough to replace lost jobs.
We need major news outlets to engage in intense reporting and educate America about how AI impacts jobs and what a future Harris or Trump administration should do.
TIPP Takes
Geopolitics, Geoeconomics, And More
1. Israeli Army Says Targeted Fatah Commander, Who ‘Directed Attacks,’ In Lebanon Strike – AFP
Israel killed a senior member of the Palestinian movement Fatah in Lebanon, accusing him of orchestrating attacks in the West Bank.
In response, the slain militant’s Fatah party accused Israel of seeking to “ignite a regional war.” Khalil al-Maqdah was killed in a strike on his car in the southern Lebanese city of Sidon, according to Fatah and a Lebanese security source.
2. Ukraine Says It Hits Pontoon Bridges In Russia, Moscow Reports Gains – Reuters
Ukraine said it was destroying Russian pontoon bridges with U.S.-made weapons to defend its incursion into Russia’s Kursk region, as Moscow said its forces had halted Kyiv’s advance there and gained ground in eastern Ukraine.
Kyiv has reported a string of battlefield successes since it crossed unexpectedly into Russia’s Kursk region, but Moscow has steadily inched forward in eastern Ukraine, pressuring troops worn down by two-and-a-half years of fighting.
3. Zelenskiy Says Solution Needed For Loan Secured By Frozen Russian Assets – RFE/RL
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Ukraine needs a real mechanism to enable Russian frozen assets to work for the country in the coming months.
“It is necessary that the funds from the aggressor’s assets work for real assistance in defense against the aggressor,” he said. “Relevant discussions have been going on for too long, and finally, solutions are needed.”
4. Russia Says Head Of UN Atomic Watchdog To Visit Kursk Nuclear Plant – Reuters
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Rafael Grossi, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), has confirmed he is ready to visit the Kursk nuclear power plant in Russia at the end of August.
Russia’s Defense Ministry last week accused Ukraine of planning to attack the Kursk plant as part of its ongoing incursion into the Russian region, an assertion Kyiv has denied.
5. China And Russia Drive Global Nuclear Power Capacity To Record High – Nikkei Asia
Global nuclear power generating capacity has reached an all-time high, with China and Russia accounting for most of the world’s new reactors.
According to the nonprofit Japan Atomic Industrial Forum and other data sources, as of June, there were 436 operational nuclear reactors worldwide. Their combined capacity was roughly 416 gigawatts, surpassing the previous record of 414 GW logged in 2018.
6. China, Russia Discuss Western Pressure, Cooperation In Latest Meetings – RFA
Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin accused Western countries of “containing” Russia and China’s potential, state-run media reported. The duo should jointly defend their shared interests and uphold the principles of a multipolar world order amidst increasing pressure from the West.
As the divide between Russia and the West grows, the Kremlin increasingly focuses on China, with ties between the two states growing ever stronger.
7. China Says It Would Defend Itself Against EU Tariffs On EVs – UPI
A spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Commerce charged that the European Union had reached “pre-set conclusions” about its electric vehicle businesses.
It tried to refute the argument that the EU was promoting unfair trade competition. The EU has long claimed that deep Chinese government subsidies created an unfair trading field with its member states.
“China will take all necessary measures to resolutely defend the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies,” the spokesman said.
8. ‘China’s Authoritarianism Won’t Stop With Taiwan’ – AFP
Taiwan’s leader, Lai Ching-te, warned that China’s “growing authoritarianism will not stop with” the island and urged democratic countries to unite to curb its expansion.
“China intends to change the rules-based international order. That is why democratic countries must come together and take concrete action. Only by working together can we inhibit the expansion of authoritarianism,” Lais said, speaking at the annual Ketagalan Forum on Indo-Pacific security.
9. Vietnam’s Clean Energy Transition Is Failing, Pressure Group Says – RFA
Under the Just Energy Transition Partnership or JETP, nine wealthy countries pledged to mobilize US$15.5 billion for Vietnam to implement clean energy projects. In return, Vietnam promised to phase out coal and consult with NGOs and the media to ensure the transition was carried out equitably.
To date, all parties have failed to live up to their commitments, Project88—which advocates for human rights in Vietnam—concluded in its 56-page report titled “Apocalypse Soon?”
10. Potential Canadian Rail Disruption Might Affect Supply Chains, Prices – UPI
Canadian Pacific Kansas City and Canadian National Railway are poised to lock out almost 9,300 rail workers after midnight Thursday if a labor deal is not reached with the workers.
Axios reported that a lockout, strike, or both could negatively affect the respective economies in the United States and Canada and cause inflation to spike. Rail shipments of some goods, such as perishable foods and hazardous materials, have already stopped.
11. Iran To Boost Ties With Japan To Address Regional Crisis: Araghchi – Kyodo News
Iran’s new foreign minister, Seyed Abbas Araghchi, said his ministry will boost ties between Tehran and Tokyo in all aspects and will cooperate with Tokyo to address the regional crisis jointly.
In an interview, the minister said Iran will welcome Japanese companies interested in working in the oil and energy sector. He added that Japan can return to Iran’s oil fields and contribute to expanding its oil production.
12. TEPCO Halts Attempt To Extract Melted Fuel At Fukushima Nuclear Plant – Kyodo News
The operator of the disaster-stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear complex was set to attempt to remove a small amount of melted fuel from one of its crippled reactors on Thursday but decided to put the trial extraction on hold due to issues discovered during preparations.
Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. has not said when it will try again after suspending the operation on Thursday morning after setup errors were identified in the debris retrieval device.
13. Taliban Ban UN Human Rights Rapporteur In Afghanistan – D.W.
Afghanistan’s de facto rulers, the Taliban, have barred UN Special Rapporteur for Human Rights Richard Bennett entry into the country.
The Taliban said he had been banned “because he was appointed to Afghanistan to spread propaganda, and he is not someone whose words we can trust.” Bennett labeled the ban “retrograde,” vowing that it would not keep him from documenting the human rights situation in the country.
14. Even 1 Cigarette A Day During Pregnancy Can Harm Baby – HealthDay News
Infants are 16% more likely to suffer major health issues following delivery if their mothers engaged in “light smoking” of one or two cigarettes a day before getting pregnant, researchers found.
Those newborns also have a 13% higher risk of landing in neonatal intensive care, results showed. These results run counter to the belief by some women that it’s okay to smoke before getting pregnant or during the first three months of pregnancy or that light smoking is unlikely to be harmful, researchers said.
15. Red Meat Linked To Increased Risk Of Type 2 Diabetes – HealthDay News
Regularly eating 50 grams of processed meat a day – the equivalent of two slices of ham – increased by 15% a person’s risk of developing Type 2 diabetes within the next ten years, results showed.
Likewise, eating 100 grams of unprocessed red meat daily – for example, a small steak – was linked to a 10% higher risk of Type 2 diabetes.
Republished with permission from TIPP Insights
