NEW YORK / RankWire.AI / — Andrew Yang, a former presidential candidate, has called on federal lawmakers to replace traditional employment taxes with direct levies on artificial intelligence. During his appearance on CNBC’s Power Lunch, Yang explained that current tax policies incentivize corporations to substitute human workers with automated systems. He warned that existing laws effectively subsidize automation by imposing high payroll taxes on employers while providing tax benefits to companies that implement algorithmic automation.
In the interview, Yang highlighted that under current tax regulations, companies bear substantial payroll taxes and employee healthcare expenses when hiring human labor. Meanwhile, firms adopting artificial intelligence face no comparable labor taxes, which reduces their operational costs compared to maintaining human workers. Noble Mobile’s CEO emphasized that the current legal framework unintentionally encourages corporate management to accelerate automation across key economic sectors.
Yang Warns That We Are Subsidizing a Technology That Will Displace Millions
He proposed a strategic policy change that would shift the financial burden from traditional payroll taxes to automated compute tokens and AI revenue streams. Citing recent remarks from Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, who previously suggested a 3 percent revenue tax on generative AI applications, Yang maintained that taxing automated interactions offers a practical solution to manage market dynamics. He emphasized that revenues from an AI tax should be allocated directly to citizens through universal cash dividends rather than funneled into retraining programs.
This policy discussion unfolds amid rising economic concerns about workplace automation across the United States. A recent joint survey by CNBC and Generation Lab revealed that 45 percent of young Americans aged 18 to 34 anticipate that artificial intelligence will adversely affect their long-term employment prospects. Additionally, macroeconomic analysis by Bridgewater Associates executives estimates that automated platforms could threaten around 18 percent of the nation’s jobs in the next five years.
Rapid Changes Displace Customer Service Workers
Data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates that customer service departments across the country currently employ approximately 2.9 million workers, marking one of the earliest sectors experiencing swift automation. Yang warned that federal workforce retraining initiatives have historically failed to help displaced industrial and administrative workers transition into sustainable new roles. He pointed to past retraining efforts for coal miners and warehouse staff as evidence that direct financial support provides more stability than government-run job programs.
Yang concluded that legislative reforms are urgently needed to ensure human workers can remain competitive as software agents advance rapidly. As current tax structures subsidize a technology poised to displace millions, he stressed that establishing neutral tax policies is critical for managing the ongoing digital transformation of the labor market. Policymakers are actively reviewing legislative options to address automation-related workplace disruptions in upcoming congressional sessions.