Artificial intelligence (AI) applications are creating unprecedented opportunities to improve productivity and reduce costs across both industrial and service sectors. These benefits are particularly evident in areas such as marketing, production, management, work organization, ICT security, logistics, and healthcare. At the invitation of the AFB Bildungs- und Energieforum and the European Centre for Workers’ Questions (EZA), AI experts, trade union representatives, and ethics specialists met in Brixen, Italy, on 14 and 15 May 2026 to attend the international conference “Future of work: How AI is changing our world of work”, which explored the opportunities and challenges associated with the current global wave of digital innovation.
Funded by the European Union, the conference welcomed more than 80 representatives of workers’ organisations from South Tyrol/Italy, Germany, Austria, Luxembourg, the Czech Republic, and Albania.
AI is a genuine game changer when it comes to analysing large volumes of data, parsing and generating texts, controlling production processes and technical operations, and even organising work itself. AI is used to create striking images in the entertainment industry, but also to influence political elections and to undermine the credibility of individuals and institutions through deepfakes. The widespread availability of AI systems such as ChatGPT has contributed significantly to public acceptance of these technologies, leading a purely binary system to be increasingly endowed with a transhuman-like aura and a kind of mythical glow. Terminology can, however, be misleading. The German term KI does not fully correspond to the English term AI, which is more closely associated with data processing and data mining. For this reason, experts tend to prefer the term “data-based systems” (DBS) in order to emphasise that, unlike human beings, AI applications cannot engage in reflective thinking.
In principle, AI systems and applications are value-neutral tools. Their main advantage lies in their ability to process enormous quantities of data within seconds and to generate outputs in accordance with the algorithms on which they are based. Their 24/7 availability, the accuracy of their processing operations, and their virtually unlimited analytical capacity explain the disruptive impact of AI systems. Whether their use proves beneficial depends on the objectives for which such systems are deployed and on the orientation of the underlying algorithms that function as analytical and processing filters. As experts pointed out, AI remains a highly ambivalent tool as long as no binding rules are in place. The European Union is a global frontrunner in establishing a regulatory framework for AI. Confronted with dependence on American hardware and the widespread use of related platforms, the EU has assessed AI systems according to their fields of application and the risks they pose to users, and has defined requirements relating to transparency, security, and conditions of use in order to prevent potential risks and harmful consequences. The EU has also required that these systems be monitored by humans rather than controlled exclusively by automated processes. Regulation in individual countries is still lagging behind, while the use of AI continues to expand rapidly.
AI systems are being introduced into day-to-day business operations by chief executives, that is, from the top down. The demands placed on staff are rapidly shifting towards programming and control. During the transition phase, the introduction of AI systems can place employees under considerable pressure to perform. It is therefore essential to promote digital literacy on a broad scale within companies and educational institutions so that the potential of AI can be harnessed for the benefit of both the economy and society. The automation of work processes brings significant efficiency gains in terms of cycle time and personnel costs, which are particularly relevant from a business perspective. From a trade union point of view, however, concerns centre on the risk of job losses, the potential for intrusive surveillance mechanisms, and the impersonal handling of work processes and requirements. Such practices point to insufficient respect for workers’ dignity and a lack of opportunities for employee co-determination. Structural change at company level is unlikely to take place without causing hardship for some workers. The task of trade unions is therefore to secure opportunities for co-determination in order to manage the ongoing changes in the labour market in a socially responsible manner.
On the one hand, we must ensure that the education system prepares young people for the digital future; on the other hand, workers whose jobs are at risk as a result of digitalisation need support in maintaining their employability. During the transition phase, wage compensation must be guaranteed in the event of job loss. In most cases, trade unions find themselves reacting to digital management and control processes that are already established in production and that increasingly shape work organisation, performance targets, and work intensity. Trade unions also face considerable difficulties in representing the interests of workers in precarious employment. Across Europe, over 28 million people worked for digital platforms in 2022, and the trend continues to rise sharply. Until 2021, around 90% of these workers were classified as self-employed. Under the 2024 Platform Work Directive, there is a legal presumption of an employment relationship if certain conditions are met. EU Member States are required to amend their legal systems accordingly by 2026. In the field of platform work, major obstacles remain when it comes to reaching out to workers and connecting them with trade unions. This makes the regulatory role of the state all the more crucial for protecting workers’ dignity.