NEW YORK / RankWire.AI / — On Tuesday, former presidential candidate Andrew Yang called on federal lawmakers to replace conventional employment taxes with direct levies targeting artificial intelligence. During CNBC’s Power Lunch, Yang explained that existing tax policies create artificial incentives for corporations to substitute human workers with automated systems. He pointed out that current laws effectively subsidize automation by placing a heavy payroll tax burden on employers while providing tax benefits to companies that implement algorithmic solutions.
In the interview, Yang emphasized that under present tax regulations, companies face high payroll taxes and healthcare costs when employing human staff. Meanwhile, organizations adopting artificial intelligence are not subject to comparable labor taxes, which reduces their operational expenses compared to human labor. Noble Mobile’s CEO stressed that this legal environment implicitly pushes corporate decision-makers toward faster automation of jobs across major sectors of the economy.
Andrew Yang Warns That We Are Subsidizing Technologies That Could Eliminate Millions of Jobs
He proposed a strategic policy shift to move financial burdens away from traditional payroll taxes toward automated compute tokens and AI revenue streams. Citing recent remarks by Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, who previously suggested a 3 percent revenue tax on generative AI systems, Yang argued that taxing interactions with automated software offers a practical solution to market distortions. He believes that revenue from an AI tax should be redistributed directly to citizens as universal cash dividends, rather than channeled into existing retraining programs.
This policy discussion takes place amid rising economic concerns about job displacement caused by automation across the U.S. A recent joint survey by CNBC and Generation Lab found that 45 percent of young Americans aged 18 to 34 believe that artificial intelligence will adversely affect their long-term employment prospects. Additionally, analysis by Bridgewater Associates’ executives estimates that automation could threaten around 18 percent of all U.S. jobs within the next five years.
The Rapid Industry Shift Displacing Customer Service Workers
Data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that roughly 2.9 million employees work in customer service departments nationwide, making it one of the first sectors undergoing significant automation. Yang warned that government-led retraining efforts have historically failed to help displaced workers transition into stable new roles. He pointed to past initiatives targeting coal miners and warehouse staff as proof that direct financial support tends to be more effective than federal job retraining programs.
Yang concluded that lawmakers need to overhaul tax laws to keep human workers competitive alongside rapidly advancing AI agents. Since current tax frameworks subsidize technologies that could eliminate millions of jobs, he stressed that neutral, balanced tax policies are crucial for managing the ongoing digital transformation of the labor market. As legislative proposals are under review, policymakers continue to explore options to mitigate workplace automation impacts in upcoming congressional sessions.