---
id: "quote-artificial-phenomenon"
type: "quote"
source_timestamps: ["§ A Survey of Executives Suggests Anticipatory Effects"]
tags: ["posturing", "executive-behavior"]
related: ["concept-performative-ai-layoffs"]
speaker: "Thomas H. Davenport and Laks Srinivasan"
speakers: ["Thomas H. Davenport", "Laks Srinivasan"]
sources: ["execution"]
sourceVaultSlug: "hbr-seg-execution"
originDay: 8
articleStem: "hbr-foci-62-layoffs-ai-potential-not-performance"
sourceUrl: "https://hbr.org/2026/01/companies-are-laying-off-workers-because-of-ais-potential-not-its-performance"
sourceTitle: "Companies Are Laying Off Workers Because of AI’s Potential—Not Its Performance"
---
# The Artificial Nature of AI Job Displacement

> These findings suggest that the phenomenon of AI taking jobs and reducing hiring is somewhat artificial. Company executives who make these moves may really believe that AI will eventually lead to large-scale automation, even though it hasn't yet… The other option is that they are simply posturing, and AI is a sexier reason to announce layoffs than simply needing to cut costs.

— [[entity-thomas-h-davenport]] and [[entity-laks-srinivasan]]

The explicit statement of the two competing motives — sincere-but-premature belief versus posturing — that together define [[concept-performative-ai-layoffs]] alongside [[concept-anticipatory-ai-layoffs]].