Let Me Vent
Before we get lost in the weeds of finance, allow me a small rant that relates to the following insight.
The other day I wanted to visit my brother, so I dove into the challenging world of airline ticket shopping. Prices? Outrageously high. I thought my screen was broken—every refresh, the numbers danced around faster than kids on a sugar high.
One airline wanted a $300 extra charge for the return flight. Another one jacked up the fare while I watched! I felt like my pocket was being picked. Even asking Perplexity.ai for answers didn’t help—the gist was: “It’s persistently high demand. Good luck!”
I’m no slouch at travel planning. I’ll hunt down deals for hotels, cars, and flights like putting together a jig saw puzzle. But going up against AI-driven airline pricing? That’s like arm-wrestling an octopus. Let’s just say, I had to bend my plans—and my will—to get a halfway decent price. Score one for the machines.
And, thanks for letting me rant.
The Culprit Behind Last Week’s Big News
The Federal Reserve dropped interest rates a whisker last week, responding to a labor market showing signs of slowing down. But this time, things are different. In the past, whenever unemployment started rising, it shot upward, often doubling in just a year or two.
This time, it’s like unemployment has been climbing a gentle hill, producing only a 1% increase over the past two years. Some say this portends a looming recession, but my charts say, “Not yet!” The culprit behind this mystery? In my opinion, the growing shadow of artificial intelligence on the job market.
Surprisingly, the economy’s still pretty strong. As of September 19th, 81% of S&P 500 companies reporting earnings for the second quarter of 2025 have beaten analyst estimates (Source, Perplexity.AI and FinancialContent.com) Strong earnings are hardly a sign of economic doom.
Yes, banks and tech companies—and anyone else with a few fancy AIs in the back room—are laying off folks. But from what I’ve read, what’s tipping the scales is that more companies are letting attrition shrink their workforce, rather than pink slips. Workers who stay have turbocharged productivity due to AI, churning out enough work to offset the company having fewer workers.
My Brush with the AI Genie
Here’s a personal story: I was helping a local charity make use of an empty building. I fed a couple of sentences describing my idea and the building to an AI, asking for a quick feasibility study. In half a minute, it spat out a business plan, complete with labor costs, equipment needed, Arizona rules, and max usage figures I could expect. The whole proposal took me less than 30 minutes to create—what once would’ve devoured a weekend.
AI’s productivity boost is real. Fewer workers can do the same, or more, work, meaning companies need fewer workers. It’s the new normal. Get used to it.
Lessons from History—and My Own Life
There is an old saying that generals always prepare to fight the last war, leaving them poorly prepared for the next one. Job seekers hoping for lost jobs to come back, or that last-century’s skills will suddenly be in demand again, will find it’s time to look in the mirror. The government push to “bring jobs home” doesn’t mean we’ll be stitching tee shirts or cranking out cell phones here in the US. New industries are being created, and they need workers with new skills. Smart workers will follow the money—all those news reports of companies investing in the United States—by moving, retraining, and jumping on board the next thing that actually needs people.
Don’t want to move for work? I get it. But here’s the thing: When Alaska’s oil boom went bust in the 1980s and took my business with it, my wife and I sold everything, bought an old motorhome, and a few months later found new careers and a new life here in Arizona. You’d be amazed how many friends wished us luck but couldn’t muster the gumption to do what we did. Wishes are cheap, but change often comes at a cost.
Bottom line: The world is changing, faster than airline ticket algorithms. Stick to the old ways at your peril—or roll with the times and see where the adventure leads.
If you want to dip your toe in the AI water, there are lots of books about beginning to use AI. YouTube has videos, and there are online classes as well. Local community colleges can be a great help.
Or, you can just do it! Enter “perplexity.ai” or any other popular AI name into your web browser. It is like Google on steroids. AI actually gives answers, not just lists of ads and websites that may or may not have your answer. When you get comfortable with Perplexity, begin to ask it more and more complicated questions, ask it to simplify answers or ask it to compare things. I like to upload long articles and ask for a 300-word summary in non-technical wording.
It’s free. Have fun with it.
