00:00IKEA is upskilling thousands of workers instead of laying them off.
00:04I visited IKEA in Malmö, Sweden in July to talk to some of its workers who are taking part in
00:09its upskilling initiative. A few years ago, IKEA introduced its BillyBot, which can handle
00:14customer service inquiries. But instead of laying off the workers who had previously done that work,
00:19IKEA spent two years retraining these workers. Before the introduction of Billy, they were
00:24answering pretty basic questions. What time does the store close? Can I bring my dog to the store?
00:29And they moved them to roles in which they were handling a lot more complicated matters,
00:33like designing kitchens or dealing with customers who had a really complicated problem.
00:37IKEA's upskilling initiative also comes at a time of increased AI anxiety. A 2026 Mercer study found
00:44that 40% of workers are now fearful that AI will take their job, up from 28% just two
00:51years ago.
00:51Right now, a lot of companies see AI as a way to save money, potentially cut workers,
00:56but IKEA really sees it as a human additive. But it's also easier for IKEA to do this because
01:01it's a private company. So it does not have to answer to shareholders who might be looking to
01:06increase profits. When I spoke to Chief Digital Officer Paran Karek about future layoffs, if AI would
01:12take the jobs of these newly reskilled workers, he said he really didn't see that being the case.
01:18Any future layoffs would be more about macroeconomic factors. Right now, the company really sees AI,
01:23especially when it comes to customer service work as an additive, something that can really help
01:28its bottom line, not a means of cutting expenses. For more on IKEA's AI strategy,
01:33you can read my feature at Fortune.com.
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