AI and the American Workforce: A Briefing on the Future of Work

Featuring

Thorsten Joachims [Moderator], Vice Provost for Artificial Intelligence Strategy, Cornell University

Eli Lehrer, President, R Street Institute

Ethan Saxon, Vice President of Legislative Affairs, AI Policy Network 

Michèle Belot, Professor of Industrial and Labor Relations and Economics, Cornell University

Miel Hostens, Associate Professor of Digital Dairy Management and Data Analytics, Animal Science, Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability

Overview

Learn how artificial intelligence is reshaping the American workforce at an upcoming briefing sponsored by Cornell University and the R Street Institute. 

Artificial intelligence is transforming how Americans work — automating routine tasks, creating new categories of jobs, and demanding new skills across nearly every sector of the economy. From manufacturing to farming to government agencies, AI adoption is accelerating faster than traditional training and educational systems are capable of preparing current and future workers.

Understanding AI’s impact — analyzed by researchers, employers, and policymakers nationwide — is essential to ensuring American workers can adapt to the jobs of the future. Realizing AI’s economic benefits will depend on innovative workforce training, education pipelines, and public policy that can keep pace with rapid technological innovation.

At the same time, schools and universities are rethinking how they prepare students for an AI-enabled workforce. From AI literacy and technical training to the development of critical thinking, creativity, and human-centered skills, educators are working to equip the next generation with the knowledge and adaptability needed to thrive alongside emerging technologies.

Join us for a discussion on strategies to prepare the American workforce for an AI-driven economy, and how policymakers can help workers, employers, and communities adapt.

Register by September 23, 2026. Lunch will be provided.