Contents
Introduction
You wake up, check your phone, scroll through the latest AI-generated news, maybe ask ChatGPT a few questions, and—if you’re lucky—have a bot quietly handling your inbox or calendar. Kinda cool, right? Like we’re living in the future.
But here’s the thing no one really talks about: while AI is making everyday life a bit smoother for some of us, it’s also creating a huge gap. A few people—the ones building or owning the tech—are getting insanely rich off it. And the rest? Well, they’re just trying to keep up.
This isn’t just a “robots are taking our jobs” kind of story. It’s bigger than that. What we’re really seeing is a major shift in power and money. The people already sitting at the top are stacking even more advantages, while the rest of the world watches from the sidelines. And yeah… that future? It may not be exactly looking fair.
The myth of AI as the “Great Equalizer”
You’ve probably heard this one before: AI will level the playing field. That’s the story tech CEOs love to tell. They paint AI as some magical tool that gives everyone equal access, equal opportunity, and a fair shot. Sounds nice, right?
But if you take even a quick peek behind the curtain, the reality looks pretty different.
The promise vs. the reality
We were promised a lot. AI was supposed to:
- Create new opportunities for everyone
- Reduce inequality by making knowledge free
- Let small businesses compete with giants
But what actually happened?
The numbers don’t lie
- The top 7 tech companies (Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, Nvidia, Meta, Tesla) added $5 trillion in market value since 2023—mostly thanks to AI hype.
- Nvidia, the company powering most AI chips, saw its stock jump 1,000% in 5 years. That’s not a typo.
- And while all that money flows upward, 14% of all workers have been displaced from their jobs by AI.
- By 2030, 14% of employees will have been forced to change their career because of AI That’s 14% of the global workforce, or 375 million workers.
- More than 7.5 million data entry jobs will be lost by 2027. This represents the largest predicted loss of jobs of any profession. The professions that are predicted to lose the most jobs are those extremely vulnerable to AI. Data entry clerks was first, administrative secretaries was second, and accounting was third.
Why this matters?
So, is AI really spreading opportunity? Not exactly. It’s actually doing the opposite. Wealth is getting more concentrated, more quickly than ever. The folks who already had the power and resources are pulling even further ahead.
And the rest? Well…
The new AI oligarchy: who’s cashing in?
Let’s talk about who’s really winning in the AI boom. Spoiler: it’s not you, me, or that indie app builder working out of a coffee shop. It’s the same old power players—just with shinier tech.
The three groups getting filthy rich
- Big Tech (Google, Microsoft, Meta):
They’ve got the models, the massive data sets, and the cloud platforms everyone’s building on. If you’re using AI for anything—chances are, you’re paying them somehow. Directly or indirectly. - Chip Giants (Nvidia, Intel):
AI needs serious computing power, and these companies make the chips that keep it all running. No chips, no AI. And they know it. - Venture Capitalists:
The same investors who threw money at AI startups early on? They’re now sitting back and watching the cash roll in. High risk, high reward—and they’re loving the reward part.
The staggering wealth gap
Let’s break this down with just a couple of jaw-dropping numbers:
- OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, went from a $29 billion valuation in 2023 to $80 billion in 2024. That’s not growth—that’s a rocket launch.
- Nvidia’s CEO, Jensen Huang, made $50 million in 2023. Meanwhile, the human trainers helping AI “learn” in places like Kenya? They’re earning less than $2 an hour.
Yeah. Let that sink in.
The real power shift
This isn’t just about billionaires getting richer—it’s about a shift in who controls the future.
- Jobs – Who gets hired, who gets replaced, and who’s stuck in limbo? AI will decide that… or more accurately, the people behind AI will.
- Information – What answers you get from AI, what news you see, what gets filtered out—it’s not neutral. Someone’s behind the curtain, pulling the strings.
- The Economy – As AI reshapes industries, those who own the tech are setting the rules. Everyone else is just trying to play along.
So yeah, AI might be smart. But right now, it’s also helping the rich get richer—and the powerful get even more powerful.
The Hidden Casualties: Workers Left Behind
AI isn’t just taking over factory jobs anymore. It’s moving way up the food chain—coming for writers, designers, lawyers, accountants, and even coders. Yep, the “safe” jobs aren’t so safe anymore.
The jobs at risk
Let’s not sugarcoat it—this is already happening:
- 73% of companies are using AI to cut down on labor costs.
- Goldman Sachs says AI could replace 300 million jobs around the world.
- Freelancers on platforms like Upwork? Many are already feeling the hit, with some reporting a 40% drop in gigs thanks to AI tools.
That’s not “someday” stuff—it’s now.
The new “AI Jobs” aren’t better
Okay, sure—some new jobs are being created. Things like:
- AI trainers
- Prompt engineers
- Content moderators
Sounds fancy. But here’s the catch:
- These roles usually pay less than the jobs they’re replacing.
- Most of them are freelance or contract gigs—no benefits, no security, no long-term path.
- A lot of the work is low-level and repetitive—like fixing AI’s weird mistakes or filtering out the bad stuff it generates.
Not exactly the dream.
The human cost
Now imagine this: you’ve spent years building skills, climbing the ladder, getting good at what you do. And suddenly, a machine shows up that can do it faster, cheaper, and—at least on paper—”good enough.” Just like it happened with Ghibli.
That’s what millions of people are facing right now. It’s not just about losing income. It’s about losing purpose, identity, and a sense of control over your future.
And honestly? That’s the real cost of this AI gold rush.
The Illusion of the “AI Side Hustle”
You’ve probably seen those ads or YouTube thumbnails shouting “Make $10,000/month with AI!” Just type in a prompt, hit generate, and boom—you’re rich! But how many people actually do?
The harsh truth about AI Money-Making Schemes
Yes, AI can help you create stuff fast—blogs, videos, ebooks, designs. But here’s the catch: so can everyone else. The internet is now overflowing with AI-generated content. And when supply explodes, prices crash.
Just look at Amazon’s Kindle store. It’s flooded with AI-written books. Most of them? Making less than $10 a month.
AI “entrepreneurs” are spending more on ChatGPT subscriptions than they earn.
Why most people lose in the AI Gold Rush
- Tools aren’t free. Actually they’re expensive. GPT-4, Midjourney, Claude—they all cost money. It adds up fast.
- The market is oversaturated (everyone’s doing the same thing).They profit whether you succeed or not.
So yeah, the dream of getting rich quick with AI? Just a dream (if we’re talking about super-rich). So it seems “AI side hustle” is just another hustle.
The Bigger Picture: A Future of AI Feudalism?
Let’s zoom out for a second. If we keep heading in the direction we’re going, the endgame isn’t just about cool tech or fancy tools. It’s about power—and who holds it.
Here’s what that future could look like:
- A handful of giant tech companies own all the key AI tools, models, and platforms. Everyone else? Just renters in their digital empire.
- Most jobs are reduced to unstable, low-paid gigs—prompt writing, content cleaning, data tagging. No security, no growth, just constant hustle.
- Regular people depend on AI tools they didn’t build, don’t understand, and definitely don’t control. But they still have to pay monthly just to keep using them.
Feels familiar? It should. It’s starting to look a lot like digital feudalism—where a few lords control the land (aka the tech), and the rest of us are just trying to survive on it.
And yes. We might already be halfway there.
So… what can we do?
Okay, deep breath.
This isn’t just doom and gloom. It’s not too late—but fixing things means we have to stop blindly cheering for AI and start asking the hard questions.
Questions like:
Should AI profits be taxed to support things like universal basic income, so people don’t get left behind when their jobs vanish?
Do workers deserve a share of the value when an AI system replaces what they used to do?
Should governments step in and break up Big Tech’s hold on AI before it’s too late?
Because… the Great AI Wealth Transfer isn’t a far-off idea. It’s already happening. Quietly. Quickly. And unless something changes, most of us are going to be stuck on the outside looking in.
We can’t afford to sit this one out.
Final thoughts
AI could be a tool for shared prosperity. But unless we demand change, it’ll just make the rich richer—while the rest of us fight for scraps.
And hey—everything we’ve said here is just an opinion, based on reading tons of reports, digging through stats, and connecting the dots from what’s already happening.
At the end of the day, we’re not anti-AI. Far from it. As a company, we’ve benefited a lot from AI tools—they’ve helped us move faster, think bigger, and get more done. We’re not feeling threatened by the tech.
But we are watching closely. Staying curious. And doing our best to ask the uncomfortable questions most people avoid.
Because the future is being written right now—and it shouldn’t be written by a handful of companies behind closed doors.
We write a lot about AI. Interested to learn more? Do not miss our previous blogs!