Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky warns against replacing entry-level workers with AI: Even if AI can do the interns' work..

Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky has warned companies against replacing entry-level workers with artificial intelligence (AI), arguing that failing to hire young employees today will create a leadership crisis tomorrow.

"[AI] can do a lot of lower-level, more entry-level position jobs. But if no young people can get jobs, then you have no one in the future to do the highly strategic leadership positions," Chesky told ABC News in a recent interview (via Fortune).

“So we need to make room for people early in their careers, even if AI can do the interns' work,” he added.

Entry-level job crisis in Amazon, Meta
Chesky’s comments come as companies including Amazon, Meta, and Salesforce cut workers to make way for AI investments and job automation, raising fears that technology could permanently replace human jobs, the report said, adding that employers are using AI to automate simpler, lower-level tasks, managers express hesitance to hire Gen Z professionals, and internship opportunities are dwindling.

Despite AI's capabilities, Chesky maintained that humans don't “realize how smart people are relative to AI,” and that workers will always be needed for novel and operational tasks.

More importantly, he argued, chatbots lack the human touch necessary for effective leadership.

“People are going to still want relationships. Leadership is still going to matter. I think AI is mostly going to be a tool. I don't think it's magic,” Chesky noted.

However, for Gen Z to develop these leadership capabilities, they need opportunities to work their way from the bottom up and learn the ropes—especially as millennials and Gen Xers eventually age out of their positions.