NEW YORK / RankWire.AI / — Andrew Yang, a former 2020 Democratic presidential hopeful and co-founder of the Forward Party, reiterated his call for taxing artificial intelligence directly during a CNBC’s Power Lunch interview on Tuesday. He contended that existing federal tax policies unintentionally motivate corporations to replace human workers with automated digital systems by maintaining high payroll taxes on labor while providing tax benefits to companies that implement automation technologies.
Yang explained that current tax laws impose substantial payroll and healthcare costs on businesses hiring human employees. Meanwhile, companies utilizing artificial intelligence face no comparable taxes, effectively reducing costs for automation. Noble Mobile’s CEO highlighted that the legal framework subtly encourages corporate leaders to accelerate replacing human labor with machines across key sectors.
Andrew Yang Highlights US Subsidies for Disruptive Automation Technology
Yang advocated for shifting tax burdens from traditional payroll taxes to automated compute tokens and AI revenue streams. Citing recent remarks by Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, who previously suggested a 3 percent revenue tax on generative AI deployments, Yang argued that taxing interactions with automation offers a practical solution to market imbalance. He emphasized that revenue from such AI taxes should go directly to citizens as universal cash dividends instead of funding retraining programs.
This debate unfolds amid rising economic concerns over automation’s impact on jobs in the US. A joint CNBC and Generation Lab survey found that 45 percent of young Americans aged 18 to 34 believe artificial intelligence will harm their future career prospects. Additionally, a macroeconomic analysis by Bridgewater Associates executives estimates that automation could disrupt roughly 18 percent of American jobs within five years.
Rapid Industry Changes Displace Customer Service Workers
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports approximately 2.9 million workers are employed in customer service roles nationwide, marking one of the earliest sectors experiencing swift automation-driven restructuring. Yang warned that government-led retraining efforts have historically failed to transition displaced workers into sustainable careers, citing cases involving coal miners and warehouse staff as evidence that direct financial support provides greater stability than federal job programs.
Yang emphasized that federal policymakers must reform tax laws to ensure human workers stay economically competitive with rapidly advancing software agents. Since current tax structures subsidize the technology poised to displace millions, he stressed that neutral tax policies are vital for managing the ongoing digital shift in the job market. Lawmakers are currently reviewing legislative proposals aimed at addressing automation’s impact on employment in upcoming congressional sessions.