At the 2026 Chongli Forum held today, September 12, Yu Minhong, founder of New Oriental, shared his observations and judgments on the current development trends of the artificial intelligence industry.
Yu Minhong mentioned at the event that while the spread of the internet industry in the past created countless new jobs, the future development of artificial intelligence will similarly generate many new employment opportunities that previously did not exist. However, a very clear trend is already visible.
Artificial intelligence is rapidly replacing a large number of existing jobs held by ordinary people. In particular, the vast majority of workers who have relied on repetitive labor for income over the past few centuries will face the most direct impact.
Furthermore, almost all new jobs created by the subsequent AI industry require practitioners to undergo systematic relearning to adapt to new job requirements and find their new positions.
Yu Minhong believes that the social changes brought about by this wave of AI technology follow a logic similar to the industrial iterations caused by the Industrial Revolution, but the overall intensity of the shock is far more severe.
A unique phenomenon not seen even during the Industrial Revolution is already emerging: the explosion of the AI industry is causing societal wealth to concentrate rapidly in the hands of a very few individuals.
He further added that any listed company deeply tied to artificial intelligence can easily reach a market capitalization of hundreds of billions or even trillions, but these massive amounts of wealth have almost no natural channels to flow into the pockets of ordinary people.
If current trends continue, artificial intelligence is highly likely to further exacerbate wealth inequality across society. The most distinctive aspect of this wealth gap is the elite group globally that has earned massive fortunes through the AI industry.
The incremental wealth in their hands cannot create enough job opportunities for the general public, nor can it be distributed to ordinary people through reasonable mechanisms. As a result, the vast majority of ordinary people are unable to share in the development dividends brought by this AI technological revolution.
Yu Minhong's observations highlight the most overlooked core concern in the current global development of AI. If supporting wealth distribution and employment safety nets fail to keep pace with technological iteration, a technological revolution meant to benefit all humanity could instead become a driver that widens social class divides.