{"id":373,"date":"2026-01-01T14:45:08","date_gmt":"2026-01-01T14:45:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.ibvl.in\/index.php\/2026\/01\/01\/ai-is-getting-a-budget-increase-and-workers-arent\/"},"modified":"2026-01-01T14:45:08","modified_gmt":"2026-01-01T14:45:08","slug":"ai-is-getting-a-budget-increase-and-workers-arent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.ibvl.in\/index.php\/2026\/01\/01\/ai-is-getting-a-budget-increase-and-workers-arent\/","title":{"rendered":"AI is getting a budget increase, and workers aren\u2019t"},"content":{"rendered":"

As AI tools ship faster than anyone can update their LinkedIn profile, anxiety about what all this \u201cefficiency\u201d means for actual human jobs is rising right alongside the hype.<\/p>\n

And unlike some tech panics of the past, there\u2019s mounting evidence this one isn\u2019t just vibes.<\/p>\n

A November study from MIT found that nearly 12 percent of jobs could already be automated using today\u2019s AI. Employers appear to have noticed.<\/p>\n

Entry-level roles are quietly disappearing, layoffs are openly linked to AI adoption, and companies are starting to squint at their org charts and ask the forbidden question: Do we really need all these people?<\/p>\n

That tension showed up clearly in a recent TechCrunch survey of enterprise-focused venture capitalists.<\/p>\n

The survey didn\u2019t even ask about labor, yet multiple VCs independently brought it up, an accidental tell that something is shifting.<\/p>\n

According to them, 2026 is shaping up to be the year when AI stops being a productivity helper and starts becoming a workforce decision.<\/p>\n

Eric Bahn of Hustle Fund summed up the mood best: no one knows exactly what\u2019s coming, but everyone agrees it\u2019s big.<\/p>\n

Repetitive roles are obvious targets, but even more complex, logic-heavy jobs may start to bend.<\/p>\n

Will AI cause mass layoffs? Boost productivity? Quietly replace junior workers? The honest answer, Bahn says, is \u201cwe don\u2019t know yet.\u201d<\/p>\n

Others are more confident. Marell Evans of Exceptional Capital predicts that as AI budgets go up, hiring budgets go down, and that layoffs will continue to drag on US employment.<\/p>\n

Rajeev Dham of Sapphire agrees, while Jason Mendel from Battery Ventures argues 2026 will be the year of AI \u201cagents,\u201d when software stops assisting humans and starts doing the work itself.<\/p>\n

Not everyone thinks AI is truly to blame. Antonia Dean of Black Operator Ventures suggests it may become the perfect scapegoat, covering for bad forecasts, overhiring, or strategic missteps.<\/p>\n

AI, after all, doesn\u2019t complain on earnings calls.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, AI companies insist they\u2019re not killing jobs, just automating \u201cbusy work\u201d so humans can focus on deeper, more meaningful tasks.<\/p>\n

Workers, understandably, are not reassured. And according to the people funding these tools, that unease isn\u2019t going away any time soon.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Companies are starting to ask the forbidden question: Do we really need all these people?<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-container-style":"default","site-container-layout":"default","site-sidebar-layout":"default","disable-article-header":"default","disable-site-header":"default","disable-site-footer":"default","disable-content-area-spacing":"default","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,1,13],"tags":[3],"class_list":["post-373","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ai","category-ai-and-ml","category-news","tag-ai"],"yoast_head":"\nAI is getting a budget increase, and workers aren\u2019t - Imperative Business Ventures Limited<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blog.ibvl.in\/index.php\/2026\/01\/01\/ai-is-getting-a-budget-increase-and-workers-arent\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"AI is getting a budget increase, and workers aren\u2019t - 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