Just like Bill Gates, Zoom's CEO now says that AI could enable a 3-day workweek — at the cost of entry-level jobs

Eric Yuan says employees might soon enjoy longer weekends as AI gains broad adoption at work, taking over mundane tasks.

As we edge closer to the end of the year, I dread having the "end-of-year fatigue" conversations with friends. Most people often complain about having to clock in at work for 40 hours a week, leaving them with little time for resting, connecting with friends and family, and, at the very least, touching grass.

In June, Microsoft released a special Work Trend Index report, which revealed that most employees feel like they are trapped in "the infinite workday." The report suggested that a typical workday for an employee starts at 6 AM while they are still in bed.

However, the cycle doesn't end at 5/6 PM as expected. Most employees wind up carrying work back home, leaving them with little time for personal things. The same goes for the weekend, with Sunday feeling like the new Monday since it is often used to prep for Monday's meetings and leftover tasks from the previous week.

Microsoft indicated that the integration of AI into workflows not only boosts an employee's morale and performance index but also provides ample time for more daunting and important tasks.

It remains to be seen if organizations will warm up to the idea, but companies like Salesforce are already knee-deep into the approach. At the beginning of the year, CEO Marc Benioff indicated that the company was seriously debating hiring software engineers while citing incredible productivity gains from agentic AIs. The executive later revealed that the company uses AI to handle up to 50% of its tasks.

A 3-day workweek might be possible with AI, but its not that glamourous