The World Economic Forum (WEF) reported that artificial intelligence (AI) will be a key driver of transformation in global labor markets over the next five years as “broadening digital access” tops the macro trend impacting market growth and workforce skills, pushing businesses to adapt to evolving demands and opportunities.
The organization’s Future of Jobs Report 2025, released Tuesday, surveyed 1,000 global employers representing 14 million workers across 22 industries and 55 economies. It found that over 60% of employers expect digital access to drive business transformation, with 86% predicting AI and information processing technologies will have the greatest impact by 2030.
Followed by Robots and autonomous systems at 58% and energy generation and storage technologies transformations at 41%.
“These trends are expected to have a divergent effect on jobs, driving both the fastest-growing and fastest-declining roles, and fueling demand for technology-related skills, including AI and big data, networks and cybersecurity and technological literacy, which are anticipated to be the top three fastest- growing skills,” the international organization said.
According to its research, the high market growth in AI investment was fueled by the fast usage of generative AI also known as ‘GenAI‘ like ChatGPT. The findings also revealed that GenAI skills are expected to be in high demand among both businesses and individuals.
“Although more generalized adoption of AI applications remains comparatively low, with only a small fraction of firms using it in 2023, adoption is growing rapidly, albeit unevenly across sectors,” it also explained.
The WEF also cited previous studies, explaining that GenAI could enable less specialized employees to take on expert tasks and enhance skilled professionals with cutting-edge knowledge, boosting efficiency.
Other transformative trends expected to drive businesses include the rising cost of living (ranked second), climate change mitigation (third), demographic shifts, and geoeconomic fragmentation alongside geopolitical tensions.