Anand Mahindra warns of ‘far bigger crisis’ than AI job losses

Amid growing anxieties over Artificial Intelligence (AI) rendering white-collar workers redundant, Mahindra Group Chairman Anand Mahindra has cautioned that the world is overlooking a far more pressing crisis: an acute shortage of skilled trades.

In a post on X, Mahindra said public discourse is disproportionately focused on AI’s potential to displace desk-based jobs, while a far greater challenge is already unfolding — the dwindling number of people entering skilled, hands-on professions. He referred to a recent podcast featuring Ford CEO Jim Farley, who revealed that the company currently has 5,000 mechanic roles lying vacant, many offering salaries of $120,000 a year.

We’re so busy fearing AI will wipe out white-collar jobs that we’re missing a far bigger crisis: the scarcity of skilled trades.

Ford CEO @jimfarley98 made a startling revelation in a recent podcast: Ford has 5,000 mechanic jobs unfilled, many paying $120,000 a year, and still…

— anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) November 17, 2025

“Ford CEO Jim Farley made a startling revelation in a recent podcast: Ford has 5,000 mechanic jobs unfilled, many paying $120,000 a year, and still no takers. Across the US, over a million essential roles in plumbing, electrical work, trucking and factory operations lie vacant,” Mahindra wrote.

He argued that while technology may automate office roles, trades that require physical dexterity, judgement and experience remain irreplaceable. “For decades, we pushed degrees and desk jobs to the top of the ‘aspirational’ ladder and quietly pushed skilled trades to the bottom. Yet these are the jobs AI cannot replace: they require judgment, dexterity, apprenticeship, and real-world expertise.”

Mahindra posed a broader question to society: “Are we about to witness a reset in what society considers a dream career?”

If the trend persists, he said, those who can “build, fix, and keep the world running” will emerge as the real winners of the AI era. “Marx imagined workers rising through struggle. He never imagined they’d rise because they became too skilled, too scarce, and too essential to replace. A revolution not through violence… but through value-discovery,” he noted.

Mahindra’s assessment sparked a lively discussion on X, with many users endorsing his view and emphasising the indispensable nature of skilled trades. One commenter wrote: “Spot on! We've been so dazzled by AI's glow that we've dimmed the light on the trades that keep our world spinning. Imagine: robots coding code, but humans still needed to wire the servers. The real revolution? Elevating apprenticeships to PhD status. Who’s ready to trade the cubicle for the toolbox?”