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Toby Walsh warns AI could squeeze graduates entering the workforce

Speaking to ABC's David Speers, the AI professor contrasts rapid disruption to office work with the lasting value of empathy and face-to-face service.

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ABC News In-depth Story of November 15, 2026Trari Newsroom

Why this story? One of ABC News In-depth's most watched videos since yesterday, with 15,289 views.

Will artificial intelligence take your job? | Insiders: On Background

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4:21Walsh identifies entry-level and graduate white-collar jobs as particularly vulnerable to AI disruption.
6:00He argues that empathy, creativity and face-to-face relationships give human workers enduring strengths.
9:37Walsh expects long-term opportunities but fears rapid disruption before workers can adjust.
12:25The discussion examines proposed Australian AI safety oversight, company transparency and possible criminal liability for executives.
17:08Walsh distinguishes human-extinction scenarios from catastrophic damage to infrastructure and cyber systems.

Entry-level office jobs could be particularly exposed to artificial intelligence, Professor Toby Walsh warns, raising difficult questions for graduates trying to get their first foothold at work.

In ABC News In-depth's Insiders: On Background interview, the University of New South Wales AI professor tells David Speers that intellectually demanding work is no guarantee of protection. Software programming and mathematics are among the fields he identifies as already being affected by automation.

His broader warning is about people using the technology as well as machines replacing tasks: "AI is not going to take your job, but someone who knows how to use AI is going to take your job."

The interview follows the Australian government's release of a draft workplace AI best-practice guide. According to ABC, it suggests employers consult workers before introducing the technology, putting employees' involvement in the transition on the policy agenda.

Walsh argues that empathy, social and emotional intelligence, creativity and adaptability remain important human strengths. He expects work built around interpersonal relationships and face-to-face service to be more resistant to replacement.

But confidence that new work will eventually emerge does not remove his concern about the speed of change. Comparing the transition with the Industrial Revolution, he says: "I'm confident in the long term. I'm actually more pessimistic in the short term."

Speers also asks about proposed Australian AI safety oversight and corporate accountability. Walsh distinguishes catastrophic harm from human extinction: his concern is that AI could seriously damage infrastructure and cyber systems, making the work of securing those systems urgent.

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The facts

Channel: ABC News In-depth
Subscribers: 2,470,000
Channel views, last 7 days: 6,207,962
Channel views, pace per day: 439,730 (on a normal day: 1,060,153)
Video published: November 14, 2026
Video views so far: 15,667 (less than a day online)
Video views, pace per day: 15,281

The numbers

The interview drew about 15,000 views since yesterday, the largest audience over that period among ABC News In-depth's uploads from the past two days.

subscribers

2,470,000

no significant change in the last 7 days

total views

1,078,463,123

views per day

439,730

typical day: 1,060,153

the video

views

15,667

likes