U.K. workers face displacement as AI becomes cheaper and faster alternative to white-collar jobs

A translator in the U.K. was asked by a client a year ago to design a glossary to train an artificial intelligence system, leading her to realize she was training her own replacement.

In the U.K., where services account for around 80% of the economy, AI has become flexible, fast and inexpensive competition for many white-collar workers, with impacts beginning to emerge.

The IMF estimated in 2024 that more than two-thirds of British workers perform tasks that AI could potentially carry out.