AI Has Come For Call Centers: Job Losses Now Spread to Lower-Middle-Income Countries
FinanceYF5 · x · 2026-10-12
An a16z weekly chart, citing Revelio Labs data, shows AI-driven call center job losses have gone global.
- High-income markets turned negative back in 2022;
- By 2025 lower-middle-income countries started shedding workers too, with the 18-country aggregate hitting roughly -2.2pp by 2026;
- The offshoring model built on labor-cost arbitrage is being rewritten by AI at both ends.
This signals the end of the "move support to cheaper countries" playbook, removing a key employment ladder for lower-income economies.
Related event: a16z: AI Is Cutting Call Center Jobs Worldwide(3 posts)→
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