Cohere CEO says AI will disrupt white collar jobs — and finance could be next

Aidan Gomez, CEO of the Toronto-based AI startup Cohere, predicts that the finance sector is poised for significant transformation due to artificial intelligence. In a recent discussion on Kleiner Perkins' 'Grit' podcast, Gomez stated, "Finance will come," emphasizing the growing influence of AI technologies in various industries. Cohere, known for its enterprise-focused applications, is already making strides in finance through collaborations with major banks like RBC and TD Bank. These partnerships leverage Cohere's advanced language models, reflecting the startup's commitment to integrating AI solutions in financial operations. Following its latest funding round in September, Cohere's valuation soared to approximately $7 billion. Gomez, who gained recognition for co-authoring the influential 2017 paper "Attention Is All You Need" during his time at Google Brain, highlighted AI's potential to enhance white-collar jobs. This sentiment resonates widely within Silicon Valley and the AI landscape. Concerns have also been raised by industry leaders, such as Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, who warned that AI could potentially eliminate up to 50% of entry-level white-collar jobs within the next five years. He elaborated on the current demand for skilled professionals, noting, "You have to pay them a lot because there's not a lot of these people for the world. There's tons of demand for these people, but not enough to meet the world's needs." Gomez pointed out that AI models excel in tasks traditionally performed by these professionals, indicating a shift in job dynamics. The impact of AI is already palpable in software engineering, where innovative tools like Cursor, along with advanced models such as Claude and ChatGPT, empower users to code without needing extensive technical skills. While other sectors like finance, legal, and publishing are still navigating the early stages of AI integration, Gomez believes the enterprise landscape is just beginning. "It's still so early for the enterprise," he remarked. "We're still doing the super foundational tasks—summarizing emails or meeting notes. It's very basic. There's so much more to accomplish in this field." Mirzadegan added that the next evolution of AI will focus on genuinely augmenting human capabilities, stating, "Isn't that the whole point of this? We're targeting a different part of the market, aiming to actually enhance people's ability to perform their jobs, which is far more transformative."