No humans needed at this startup: Mechanize aims to automate all jobs with AI

The debate over whether artificial intelligence (AI) will replace humans in the workplace has intensified with the recent launch of the AI startup Mechanize. Founded by Tamay Besiroglu, the company has set its sights on automating every aspect of work, with a controversial promise that AI will ultimately replace human workers in various sectors, particularly white-collar jobs.

Mechanize’s mission, outlined in a post on the social media platform X, is to “build virtual work environments, benchmarks, and training data to enable the full automation of all work.” According to Besiroglu, the startup intends to create simulated environments that will replicate tasks performed by humans across the global economy, with the ultimate goal of automating all jobs. This ambitious plan includes automating tasks such as computer use, long-term projects that lack clear success criteria, teamwork, and prioritising tasks when faced with obstacles and interruptions.

In its announcement, Mechanize went further, claiming that it would automate the economy as a whole. The company envisions capturing the full range of human work through its advanced AI systems, which would replicate the cognitive abilities required for tasks performed in offices, administrative roles, and managerial positions.

The implications of such a vision are vast. Mechanize’s founder calculated the total addressable market for this innovation by aggregating the global wages paid to human workers, which amounts to approximately $60 trillion annually. However, despite the broad scope of its ambitions, Besiroglu clarified that the immediate focus of Mechanize is on automating white-collar work rather than manual labour, which would require a different approach, including robotics.

The reaction to Mechanize’s launch has been mixed, to say the least. Many in the tech industry have been sceptical, with some arguing that the vision of completely replacing human workers could have dire consequences for the workforce. In response to the announcement, one X user expressed concern that the automation of most human labour “will be a huge loss for most humans.” This sentiment reflects broader anxieties about the potential for AI to make human workers redundant.

The fears surrounding AI and automation are not new. A study by PYMNTS Intelligence, which surveyed workers on their views about the potential for AI-driven job displacement, found that 54% of respondents believed AI posed a “significant risk” of widespread job losses. This concern spans industries, with workers in technology and non-customer-facing roles most likely to express concern (58%). In contrast, workers in healthcare and education sectors, which rely more heavily on human interaction, were less worried, with 48% and 52% expressing concern, respectively.

Despite these fears, some experts argue that AI is more likely to augment human work rather than replace it. MIT economics professor David Autor, for example, has stated that AI could make workers more valuable by freeing them from repetitive or mundane tasks. Autor draws on historical examples to support this view, noting that over the past two centuries, technological advancements have consistently displaced certain types of work, such as in agriculture and manufacturing. However, these advancements have also led to an increase in the value of labour as people moved into more skilled, higher-paying roles.

The contrast between Mechanize’s vision of a fully automated workforce and the more optimistic view of AI as a tool to enhance human capabilities highlights the central debate about AI’s role in the workplace. Will AI displace workers, leaving millions unemployed, or will it enable people to do their jobs more effectively and creatively?

As the debate continues, the rise of startups like Mechanize signals that automation is no longer a distant possibility but a reality being actively pursued. Whether this will lead to a utopian future of productivity and efficiency, or a dystopian world of job displacement, remains to be seen.