Unlike past industrial shifts, AI's impact won't be contained to specific industries. Once AI can perfectly replicate a human worker behind a keyboard, video, and mouse, it will trigger a simultaneous displacement wave across all remote-capable jobs.

A rapid, significant (e.g., 5%) spike in unemployment over a short period (e.g., 6 months) due to AI would trigger an immediate and massive political and economic response. This would be comparable in speed and scale to the multi-trillion dollar stimulus packages passed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The potential for an AI-driven, post-capitalist world of abundance is real. However, the path there will likely be as destructive as a world war, as the rapid upending of the economic order will throw society into chaos before stability is achieved.

The rapid displacement of jobs by AI will cause suffering beyond finances. It will trigger a profound crisis of meaning and identity for millions whose sense of self is tied to their profession, creating emotional distress and potential societal unrest.

Drawing parallels to the Industrial Revolution, Demis Hassabis warns that AI's societal transformation will be significantly more compressed and impactful. He predicts it will be '10 times bigger' and happen '10 times faster,' unfolding over a single decade rather than a century, demanding rapid adaptation from global institutions.

Tech leaders cite Jevon's Paradox, suggesting AI efficiency will create more jobs. However, this historical model may not hold, as the speed of AI disruption outpaces society's ability to adapt, and demand for knowledge work isn't infinitely elastic.

To grasp AI's potential impact, imagine compressing 100 years of progress (1925-2025)—from atomic bombs to the internet and major social movements—into ten years. Human institutions, which don't speed up, would face enormous challenges, making high-stakes decisions on compressed, crisis-level timelines.

While AI may eventually create a world of abundance where energy and labor are free, the transition will be violent. The unprecedented scale of job displacement, coupled with a societal loss of meaning, will likely lead to significant bloodshed and social upheaval before any utopian endpoint is reached.

Demis Hassabis, CEO of Google DeepMind, warns that the societal transition to AGI will be immensely disruptive, happening at a scale and speed ten times greater than the Industrial Revolution. This suggests that historical parallels are inadequate for planning and preparation.