As the world enters a new era of rapid technological transformation, a new report by the World Economic Forum (WEF) has identified four key technologies expected to redefine how nearly 80 percent of the global workforce earns a living.
The Forum says that artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, advanced energy systems, and sensor networks will drive massive changes across industries and reshape labour markets in ways that could unlock productivity, improve efficiency, and generate new categories of work worldwide.
Published in early October, the report titled “Jobs of Tomorrow: Technology and the Future of the World’s Largest Workforces” was developed by the WEF’s Global Future Council on Jobs and Frontier Technologies. It explores how technological advancement will transform seven major job families that together employ the majority of the world’s workers—agriculture, manufacturing, construction, wholesale and retail trade, transport and logistics, business and management, and healthcare.
According to the Forum, the combined impact of these four technologies will ripple through global labour markets, altering production processes, business models, and workforce structures across both developed and emerging economies. However, it warns that fully realising this potential will depend on deliberate, collaborative actions aimed at ensuring equitable access and mitigating associated risks.
Till Leopold, head of Work, Wages, and Job Creation at the World Economic Forum, said, “The path of technology development will be determined by decisions made now and in the coming years.Understanding which technologies will be most transformative and how they will reshape the seven job families that represent nearly 80 percent of workers is crucial to anticipating their impact and driving towards positive outcomes.”
While much of the global debate on the future of work has centred on automation and AI’s effect on desk-based office jobs, the report draws attention to how emerging technologies are already revolutionising real-world sectors beyond the corporate environment.
For instance, drone technologies are streamlining urban delivery systems in the United Arab Emirates and facilitating critical medical supply transport to remote regions in Ghana. In several African nations, rooftop renewable energy systems are reducing downtime for frontline workers by stabilising electricity access, thereby boosting productivity while creating demand for skilled professionals in the renewable energy sector.
In construction, semi-automated machinery is helping reduce physical strain and improve worker safety. Meanwhile, in healthcare, robotics powered by AI-driven data analytics are being integrated to reshape patient care processes, offering new efficiencies and transforming workforce dynamics in hospitals and clinics.
The WEF emphasised that the way these technologies transform industries will differ across sectors and countries, depending on their unique needs, infrastructure, and workforce composition. In agriculture and healthcare, the priority will be improving technology diffusion and access especially in developing economies where gaps in connectivity and capital investment persist.
For manufacturing, strategies will need to be tailored to each nation’s industrial base, while the interconnected fields of wholesale, retail, transport, and logistics stand to gain the most from digital platforms that enhance efficiency in routing and inventory management—provided they avoid creating monopolistic power structures.
“These technologies hold immense promise to amplify human potential,” said Neeti Shukla, co-chair of the Global Future Council on Jobs and Frontier Technology, adding “The Council brings together diverse expertise to reimagine meaningful work, advance upskilling and reskilling, and anticipate challenges along the way.”
The Forum’s report makes a strong case for multi-stakeholder collaboration among employers, governments, and technology developers to shape a more productive and inclusive global workforce. Key recommendations include expanding investment in technological innovation, fostering efficient market ecosystems, aligning workforce strategies with emerging technologies, and ensuring that skill development keeps pace with innovation.
“The paper provides clarity on where the biggest transformation opportunities exist. By bringing together such diverse perspectives, the Global Future Council network can create a pathway for technology development that enhances livelihoods worldwide,” Sam Grayling, Council Manager and Insights Lead for Work, Wages, and Job Creation at the WEF noted.
Beyond the potential for economic gains, the WEF report underscores an urgent need for forward-thinking policies that address both opportunity and disruption. Without intentional planning, technological acceleration could deepen inequality, particularly between countries that have access to digital infrastructure and those that do not. Conversely, with the right frameworks, emerging technologies could become engines of inclusive growth creating millions of new jobs while improving the quality of existing ones.
Ultimately, the WEF stresses that the future of work will be defined not merely by the technologies themselves, but by how societies choose to adopt and govern them. The choices made today, about investment, education, and equity will determine whether AI, robotics, and advanced energy systems become tools for shared prosperity or sources of greater global division.
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