OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says AI is unlikely to bring shorter workweeks because people naturally become more ambitious and competitive as technology makes them more productive.
Speaking on the Relentless podcast, Altman said technological advances have long promised more leisure time, but history shows that higher productivity usually leads people to raise their expectations rather than work less.
"Technology... has been promising people that they're going to work less," Altman said. "But somehow we never get the promise of the four-hour workweek at mass scale in society. And I don't expect AI to change that."
According to Altman, AI will help people accomplish more, but they'll also create new goals, businesses, and industries instead of reducing their workloads.
"We always want more," he said. "People are very focused on how they're doing relative to other people."
Altman believes competition will continue driving the economy, predicting people will remain just as busy in an AI-powered future, even if the nature of work changes dramatically.
His comments come as companies continue investing heavily in AI while debates over shorter workweeks, remote work, and workplace productivity remain unresolved.