The Governor of the Bank of England has issued a stark warning that the United Kingdom must prepare for significant upheaval in the jobs market as artificial intelligence (AI) becomes more widespread.
A Historical Parallel: AI and the Industrial Revolution
Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme on Friday 19 December 2025, Andrew Bailey drew a direct comparison between the current AI revolution and the societal transformation of the Industrial Revolution. He noted that both periods sparked deep public concern about the impact of new technology on employment and daily life.
"As you saw in the industrial revolution, now over time, I think we can now sort of look back and say it didn't cause mass unemployment, but it did displace people from jobs and this is important," Mr Bailey stated. "My guess would be that it's most likely that AI may well have a similar effect. So we need to be prepared for that, in a sense."
The Critical Need for Skills and Training
The Governor emphasised that the key to navigating this transition lies in education. He argued that workers equipped with AI-related skills would find it "a lot easier" to secure employment in the changing landscape.
While acknowledging AI's "pretty substantial" potential to boost the national economy, Bailey cautioned that the benefits may take time to materialise fully. "How quickly it comes through is another question, history would suggest that it does take some time," he added.
Which Jobs Are Most at Risk from AI?
Recent research provides concrete evidence of the roles most vulnerable to AI automation. A Microsoft study, which analysed over 200,000 interactions with its Copilot generative AI chatbot, identified professions with the highest task overlap.
The findings revealed that:
- Interpreters and translators face the highest risk, with 98% of their work activities overlapping with AI capabilities.
- Historians and mathematicians followed closely, with a 91% overlap.
- Writers (85%) and journalists (81%) also scored highly, indicating a significant portion of their tasks could be assisted or replaced by AI tools.
Mr Bailey concluded that while the long-term economic outlook with AI is positive, a proactive focus on retraining and skills development is essential to manage the inevitable disruption to the UK workforce.
