OpenAI's Mira Murati Says AI May Kill Some Jobs That 'Shouldn't Have Been Jobs In The First Place' And Draws Ire From AI's Critics

In Shrek, the villainous Lord Farquaad famously says, "Some of you may die, but that is a sacrifice I am willing to make."

To many creatives, OpenAI Chief Technology Officer Mira Murati sounded a lot like Lord Farquaad at a talk she gave at Dartmouth Engineering two days ago when she addressed concerns that artificial intelligence will take jobs by saying, "Some creative jobs maybe will go away, but maybe they shouldn't have been there in the first place."

OpenAI's Mira Murati: "some creative jobs maybe will go away, but maybe they shouldn't have been there in the first place" pic.twitter.com/wi9wAKStgj

— Tsarathustra (@tsarnick) June 20, 2024

In response to the above tweet from @tsarnick, user @PicoPaco17 wrote, "She's saying the quiet part out loud," and indeed, Murati's comments lay bare and seem eager to validate the concerns creatives and artists have had about the recent push to incorporate AI into society from the tech sphere.

Over the past several years, criticisms of AI have centered around concerns that cost-cutting entertainment company executives will use it to try and fudge the roles of artists, resulting in the loss of entertainment industry jobs and inferior final products.

Naturally, as @tsarnick's tweet spread on Twitter / X, there was a familiar split in takes about Murati's comments, as some tech-minded individuals seemed to nod in agreement while AI's critics found her comments ghoulish.

Some pointed out that even if OpenAI's goal is as nefarious as eliminating creative jobs in the entertainment industry, the company would probably be smart to stop using Murati as a spokesperson if this is how she represents that ideal.