AI to kill off WFH? Workers may return to the office to 'differentiate themselves from a robot'

Workers may return to offices to 'differentiate themselves from a robot' amid fears they are being outshone by AI robots, the chair of a global accountancy firm has predicted. 

Kevin Ellis, chairman of PwC, said staff who have been regularly working from home since the pandemic may prefer to come into the office to have 'face to face' conversation with humans so that they are not replaced by AI.

Speaking to 25,000 staff members last week he said: 'For professional services, where researching and summarising data is a key part of junior roles, AI has the potential to fast-track year one trainees to year three. You’re freeing people up to do more.'

He added that this move towards more advanced technology would throw obstacles at trainees in their early careers. 

'This will in turn require more coaching to equip people for more responsibility sooner and impart knowledge that would typically be acquired over a longer period,' he said. 

PwC's chairman said staff who have been regularly working from home since the pandemic may prefer to come into the office to have 'face to face' conversation with humans so that they are not replaced by AI. (file photo)

Mr Ellis said he thinks that AI has the potential to fast-track year one trainees to year three

'The latest wave of AI will likely bring people back to the office. People are going to want to learn from others face to face, and the best way a human can differentiate themselves from a robot is in person.'

Workers in professional occupations are more likely than most to work from home, with 27 per cent saying they do so exclusively and 44 per cent saying they have a hybrid working pattern, according to the Office for National Statistics.

Following the pandemic, PwC was one of the major firms to introduce a more flexible working pattern, with colleagues encouraged to come into the office two days a week and complete the rest at home. 

In February 2022, 84 per cent of workers who had to work from home because of the pandemic said they planned to carry out a mix of working at home and in their place of work in the future, according to ONS data.

And more than 40 per cent of civil servants are reportedly still working primarily from home, according to The Times.