'We are just as busy as in 1750': Sanjeev Sanyal disagrees with Bill Gates, says AI won't bring two-day workweek

Economist Sanjeev Sanyal on Wednesday dismissed Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates' prediction that artificial intelligence will usher in a two-day workweek, calling it historically inaccurate and overly optimistic. In a post on X, Sanyal said: "Bill Gates thinks that AI will lead to a two-day work week, presumably because AI will do all the work. Totally disagree." 

"Technologists have promised such things since the Industrial Revolution. It is based on the idea that there are limited types of work to be done, but each innovation created new kinds of work. This is why we are just as busy, perhaps more busy, than in 1750," the economist added. 

Gates had recently reiterated his view on NBC’s The Tonight Show, where he said AI could potentially reshape the nature of work and drastically reduce the hours needed from humans. “What will jobs be like? Should we, you know, just work like 2 or 3 days a week?” Gates stated. "It solves all these specific problems, like we don’t have enough doctors or mental-health professionals… but it brings with it kind of so much change."

Gates said he expects intelligence to become widely accessible through AI in the next decade, especially benefiting sectors like education and healthcare. "With AI's continued development...intelligence will become freely available and commonplace, providing access to excellent medical advice and exceptional tutoring," he noted, adding that while human-specific activities like professional sports might remain untouched, manufacturing, logistics, and food production would be "solved problems".

Sanyal, however, is skeptical of such predictions. He points out that every technological leap — from the steam engine to automation — has consistently birthed new demands, roles, and industries rather than freeing up human time.