Does AI’s rise have to mean job losses? East Asia tells a different story

Studies from Vietnam to South Korea show AI adoption has not cannibalised jobs. Instead of simple mechanisation, economies are synergising

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The automated Seres Super Factory fpr electric vehicles in Liangjiang New Area, southwest China’s Chongqing, on September 19. Photo: Xinhua

Hamzah Rifaat

Hamzah Rifaat is a visiting fellow at the Stimson Center in Washington D.

Published: 9:30am, 7 Dec 2025

Western analysts often frame automation, artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics as an existential threat to workers, with the risk of impending unemployment potentially triggering economic unrest.

However, 74 per cent of all industrial robots deployed last year were in Asia, where they do not appear to be replacing workers but are instead redefining roles amid innovative modes for production and higher efficiency.

As digital factories become ubiquitous, countries such as Vietnam and China are embracing AI “factory brains”, making manufacturing more resilient and competitive by reshaping work and traditional supply chains.

East Asia is not simply “mechanising”. It is building systems whereby technology, productivity and human capital are merging for a sustainable future.

China’s automation drive, for example, is anchored in pragmatism, with its creation of digital factories and AI systems optimising production by easing tasks for workers. Companies such as Midea Group have deployed AI factory brains, leaving some repetitive tasks to robots while workers focus on monitoring and evaluation.

Such automation is not limited to China’s high-end industries but encompasses sectors such as textiles and food processing – reducing labour strain and increasing efficiency, monitoring, logistics and supply chain management.

Does AI’s rise have to mean job losses? East Asia tells a different story

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Studies from Vietnam to South Korea show AI adoption has not cannibalised jobs. Instead of simple mechanisation, economies are synergising

Studies from Vietnam to South Korea show AI adoption has not cannibalised jobs. Instead of simple mechanisation, economies are synergising