CBA CEO: AI will reshape jobs in Australia and globally

Commonwealth Bank of Australia CEO Matt Comyn wrote that artificial intelligence will reshape jobs across Australia and around the world, and that downplaying the impact of automation will leave workers unprepared.

Comyn said the near-term and decade-ahead outlook for work is uncertain. He wrote that some tasks are likely to be automated and some job categories may shrink, while other roles could expand and many positions will retain their basic structure even as required skills change.

Comyn wrote: “This will mean real change for people. At CBA, as in many large organizations, some work will be done by smaller teams. At the same time, some career paths will steepen as people use AI to take on more complex work sooner. This will create opportunities for many people, but it will be demanding for everyone. Pretending otherwise does not protect workers. It only ensures they are surprised later.”

The bank has already announced rounds of job reductions, including a recent cut of about 120 roles and an earlier round affecting roughly 300 employees. Other firms in technology and related sectors have signaled larger workforce reductions, including plans at a website-building firm that could affect about 1,000 employees.

Industry data show a sharp rise in tech job cuts: tens of thousands of roles were eliminated in the first quarter of the year, and more than 100,000 global job cuts have been recorded so far in 2026.

Comyn called on employers, educators and policymakers to plan for transitions. He recommended preparing training, redeployment and support so workers can adapt as tasks evolve and new role types emerge.

Financial institutions and technology companies are already using AI for data analysis, customer service and document processing. Experts say automation can increase productivity and create new jobs while also shortening or removing advancement paths in some existing roles, leading to a need for reskilling and changes in workforce planning.