Kevin Hassett, the Trump administration’s top economic adviser, said Monday that artificial intelligence could make workers so productive that companies would slow hiring.
“I think there’s been mixed signals in the job market,” he said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” adding that there were “really, really positive signals in the output market.”
“We could see a bit of a period of near calm in the labor market as companies realize that AI is making their workforces so much more productive that they don’t necessarily need to hire young people straight out of college,” Hassett said after noting that U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) grew at a strong pace in the second quarter of 2025.
But he insisted that any softening in the market due to AI would be temporary.
“The growth in output and income will be so high that new ways to spend money will emerge and the free market will work out relatively quickly,” Hassett said.
Concerns about AI displacing entry-level jobs are not new, but they have rarely been voiced by the Trump administration, which has championed emerging industries and taken steps to expand development in the United States.
President Donald Trump has signed several executive orders aimed at reducing regulatory barriers and encouraging the development of AI infrastructure, including data centers.
David Sachs, President Trump’s “czar” of AI and cryptocurrencies, said in early November that “there will be no federal bailout for AI.” His comments came after OpenAI Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar said her startup wanted a federal “backstop” to help with its infrastructure investments. The monk later retracted his comments.
Hassett’s comments also come as President Trump and his allies seek to refocus their message on affordability after Democratic candidates focused on the issue won big elections earlier this month.
Hassett said Monday that despite Trump’s claims, overall food prices have not fallen during President Trump’s second term.
“The people are still trying to dig themselves out of a big hole dug by the policies of the previous government,” he said.
Average monthly grocery shipping costs rose under the Biden administration and have “barely gone up” since Trump returned to the White House, he said.
“Purchasing power has gone up,” Hassett added.
“It’s kind of surprising that the cost issue is somehow being blamed on us,” he said.
