JPMorganChase CEO Jamie Dimon Explores the Future of AI and Work

The AI, Analytics, and the Future of Work Initiative at Georgetown’s McDonough School of Business hosted Chairman and CEO of JPMorganChase Jamie Dimon for a moderated discussion with Alberto Rossi, the initiative’s director.

The event featured Dimon’s perspective on how he envisions artificial intelligence (AI) revolutionizing the global workforce, job market, and financial services industry.

Current and Future Concerns for AI

During the event, Rossi called attention to the “tumultuous time” we currently live in, whereas Dimon indicated that it’s geopolitical risks that concern him most. 

“The world of order has changed,” Dimon said. As overseas risks begin to grow larger, Dimon stressed that America must prioritize its security and focus on building up its own resources to prepare for international action. “[I’m more] worried about how we handle ourselves.”

Despite growing concerns about the future growth of AI, Dimon noted that the technology will prove to be a powerful tool moving forward. The JPMorganChase CEO encouraged the use of AI and viewed it as “transformational” and another tool to “protect American security.” 

He also added that there are already bad actors using AI for poor reasons; however, these are risks that have been tied to any other technological advancement, and work will have to be done to establish rules to ensure appropriate use. Dimon noted that, either way, AI will make its way into all our lives and its impact is “not going to happen in the way that people expect.”

In fact, JPMorganChase has reflected this view in many of its day-to-day operations.

“We’re the biggest financier of all AI infrastructure in the world,” Dimon shared. “We don’t delegate technology to just one group of people in the firm. Every team has at least one person who really knows AI.”

He does, however, acknowledge that our current way of functioning will experience large changes in the wake of AI. “If AI can replace people and do jobs in better ways, that’s a good thing for our society overall,” said Dimon. 

It will, he conceded, reduce certain jobs in the workforce. To combat this, he noted that we must prepare people for this reality and promote continuous upskilling and strong data governance.

Many of the event attendees were Georgetown students, who expressed concern about the role of AI in the financial industry and how to navigate the workforce after graduation. Dimon acknowledged that AI will do many tasks for everyone. “AI will work in places you may not see, but are still valuable.” 

However, Dimon emphasized that the one thing AI cannot do is take away the impact of the human experience. “Learn how to think. AI’s not going to do full observations for anyone,” he said.

Advice for Entering the Workfoce

The key takeaways Dimon left for students entering the workforce was to develop three strong traits:

Dimon held that AI is a powerful tool for employees and anyone entering the workforce, but people are still at the heart of work. “People have skills that AI doesn’t.” 

For those entering the workforce, Dimon said staying ahead requires continuous learning from others, ongoing reading about the world, and collaboration with others to find answers to challenging questions.

“Hirers want good, honest, and hardworking people,” he said. “You want people who create an open environment for everyone, and who are loyal to principles, not people.”

Dimon’s discussion offered an optimistic, yet grounded, view of a future shaped by AI. While he acknowledged that it will bring change to how we interpret work today, he emphasized that this change is not necessarily a negative thing. In fact, Dimon encouraged us to embrace this change and harness AI to enhance the human element to do better by one another.