Leading Signal — Latest quarter
S&P 500 AI Workforce Mentions in Earnings Calls
Confidence range: 46% to 60%
52% of S&P 500 companies now mention AI in the context of workforce, efficiency, or restructuring on their quarterly earnings calls. This is up from just 8% before ChatGPT launched in late 2022. Companies that discuss AI + workforce on calls subsequently show headcount growth 3.2 percentage points lower than non-mentioners. This metric serves as a leading indicator of corporate intent — it signals what executives are planning before the layoffs and restructuring happen.
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How This Prediction Has Evolved
Each data point is from a different source. Dots are color-coded by evidence tier.
Sources (14)
AI was the most-cited topic in S&P 500 earnings calls in 2025. Companies mentioning AI in workforce context outperformed peers by 8.2 percentage points on average.
Research agenda for understanding transformative AI's economic implications. Corporate AI discussion intensity serves as leading indicator of deployment and labor market effects.
Record 306 S&P 500 companies cited AI in Q3 2025 earnings calls, surpassing prior record of 292. 95% of IT and Communications sectors mentioned AI. AI-citing companies outperformed 13.9% vs. 5.7%.
44% of S&P 500 discussed AI-workforce in Q1 2025, a slight pullback from Q4 2024's record. Discussion maturing: less hype, more specific deployment data.
Record 48% of S&P 500 companies mentioned AI in workforce context. Average mentions per call reached 11. 'Restructuring' and 'automation' became top co-occurring terms.
Companies that mention AI + workforce on calls have average headcount growth 3.2pp lower than non-mentioners. The correlation has strengthened each quarter.
44% of S&P 500 discussed AI-workforce. Key new theme: 'AI-native' hiring replacing traditional roles in tech and professional services.
Slight dip to 41% as initial AI hype normalizes. Discussion shifting from aspirational to operational — specific ROI figures cited.
43% mentioned AI-workforce topics. A new record. Companies increasingly cite specific headcount savings from AI deployments.
40% of S&P 500 companies mentioned AI in context of workforce strategy. 'Year of Efficiency' framing adopted by 12% of companies.
AI mentions reached 36% of S&P 500 companies. Key themes: 'efficiency gains,' 'headcount optimization,' and 'AI-driven productivity.'
32% of S&P 500 companies now discuss AI on earnings calls. 'AI' mentioned an average of 7 times per call among mentioning companies.
AI mentions in S&P 500 earnings calls more than doubled to 18%. Companies began discussing AI efficiency gains and workforce implications.
Only 8% of S&P 500 companies mentioned AI in Q4 2022 calls. Pre-ChatGPT baseline for corporate AI discussion.