Employment and labour force

Public debate on AI oscillates between dismissal and alarmism, but both extremes stem from the same misunderstanding: misreading what the technology actually does. Pattern recognition and imitation do not amount to capacity for reasoning or creativity, and that distinction will shape AI’s ultimate impact on jobs and productivity.

AI adoption among Spanish firms rose from 12.4% to 21.1% between 2023 and 2025, concentrated in sectors where exposure to automation is already highest. While the distributional consequences fall disproportionately on mid-level white-collar workers, reversing earlier displacement patterns, Spain’s position at a historic employment peak offers an opportunity to manage this transition from a position of relative strength.