According to a report from ShanghaiTech University CEISD, based on the analysis of 65,200 individual tasks across 1,267 different professions, artificial intelligence in China is not merely eliminating jobs but fundamentally transforming them. The analysis covered over 700 million job postings on five major platforms between 2022 and 2026.
The central finding of the study is that approximately 21 million positions have been reshaped through a combination of tasks, accounting for 18.6% of the total number of open vacancies. The methodology shifted focus from job titles to the composition of tasks performed, revealing that high susceptibility to AI does not always equate to unemployment risk.
The study compared Java developers and customer support representatives. While script processing and ticket entry in customer support can be handled by large language models (LLMs) with minimal human involvement, Java developers retain high-level tasks such as architectural design, fault diagnosis, and on-site decision-making, which drives salary growth for senior engineers despite the automation of junior coding tasks.
Reductions most severely affect entry-level and mid-level positions. Among the 33.2% of roles classified as task combinations with high AI exposure, 26.6% fall into the zone of replacement pressure with high exposure and low complementarity, meaning one of four online vacancies is subject to structural adjustment caused by AI. The impact is unevenly distributed: entry-level workers earning between 5,000–8,000 yuan with 1 to 3 years of experience face the greatest reduction, while positions above 12,000 yuan show full recovery, and roles exceeding 50,000 yuan demonstrate positive momentum.
The traditional training process for junior specialists, which includes document processing, data entry, and standardized communication, is disappearing as these functions are absorbed by LLMs. Contrary to expectations of a mass emergence of new professions, the report notes only a minimal increase in job titles since 2023. A slight increase is observed only in the titles 'LLM algorithm engineer' and 'robotics engineer,' while traditional roles in recommendation, risk control, and SLAM continue to decline. The fastest-growing are not new professions, but existing roles transformed through task recombination. The defining new employment type is the composite closed loop, where employers increasingly prefer candidates capable of managing the entire cycle—from requirement definition to execution, verification, and reporting—instead of narrowly specialized employees.
The market correction has gone through three stages: a 2.6% reduction in 2024 during tool experimentation, a panicked surge of 30.1% in 2025, and a rational stabilization at 16.9% in 2026. Those who combine AI complementarity with opportunities for on-site work and risk responsibility gain an advantage, challenging the traditional entry path into the labor market for recent graduates.
The progress of artificial intelligence (AI) is at the center of discussions about the professional future. However, a new OECD report indicates that this technology has not yet triggered a wave of unemployment among the organization's member countries.
The document, titled Employment Outlook 2026, from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), reveals that the unemployment rate remains at 4.9%, a figure very close to the historical low of 4.8%, reached in June 2023. Projections point to an increase of 0.3% in employment this year and 0.6% in the following year.
These indicators confirm that AI development, so far, has not reduced job availability in the examined nations. Mathias Cormann, Secretary-General of the OECD, stated during the report's presentation that there is no evidence that intensive use of AI by corporations is causing a broad contraction in labor demand.
Although the overall picture remains positive, young people's entry into the labor market remains more complex. The OECD suggests that recent advances in generative AI contribute to this scenario. Simultaneously, companies are placing greater emphasis on specific skills required for various roles.
The report details several important points: greater valuation of competencies linked to new technologies; modification of skills required by companies; greater difficulty for young people to access the market; and the continuation of job growth despite transformations.
Mathias Cormann emphasized that AI is promoting a metamorphosis in work, not just a reduction, ensuring that the technology has not yet compromised employment expectations for both young people and workers in general.
The study also observed the resilience of the labor market, even in the face of the impact of the war in the Middle East on energy costs. Job creation remained robust, and the volume of vacancies, although lower than the post-pandemic peak, has stabilized since the beginning of the conflict.
Additionally, the report points out that many employees have not yet noticed improvements in their income. In about one-third of OECD countries, real wages remain below levels recorded five years ago. Final data indicate that AI already influences the skills sought by companies, but, according to the OECD itself, there are no signs of a generalized decrease in jobs in member countries.
