--- title: "Genius Exec Says There Are Only Two Possibilities for AI: It’ll Collapse the Economy, or Make Everyone’s Job Obsolete" description: "Publishing magnate Keith Riegert recently told a crowded room that there are only two possible AI futures, and neither of them are good." date: "2025-11-09" modified: "2025-11-09" authors: - name: "Joe Wilkins" job_title: "Correspondent" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jwilkins.md" url: "https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/ai-economy-jobs-keith-riegert" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "Ethics" - "Finance" - "Future Society" - "Investing" - "The Industrialists" --- # Genius Exec Says There Are Only Two Possibilities for AI: It’ll Collapse the Economy, or Make Everyone’s Job Obsolete ![Publishing magnate Keith Riegert recently told a crowded room that there are only two possible AI futures, and neither of them are good.]() *Illustration by Tag Hartman-Simkins / Futurism. Source: Getty Images* The amount of money being spent on artificial intelligence is astronomical. Investors have lavished the top tech companies and startups alike with hundreds of billions of dollars — so much so, in fact, that an estimated [92 percent]() of US GDP growth now comes from AI. If trends continue in 2026, [conservative estimates]() peg the spending from just the "largest technology firms" at $550 billion. With that kind of cash riding on AI, it's safe to say investors are expecting something big — like, say, a [totally new era of human development](). Many [economists](), [journalists](), and [venture capitalists]() have argued that the gold at the end of the rainbow is less a pot of riches than the complete automation of all jobs. Basically, the idea goes that whoever's left holding the bag when the new AI era comes to pass will be [god emperor](), for better or worse. That idea isn't lost on publishing magnate Keith Riegert, the CEO of Ulysses Press, who recently told a crowded room of book industry leaders that there are only two AI futures: a hellscape of mass unemployment, or a "scaling plateau triggering economic collapse." "I don't know which ones going to happen," he said, commenting that a financial catastrophe "is the version of the future that I would prefer." Riegert's brutal assessment came at the Sharjah's Publishers Conference in the United Arab Emirates, a massive annual meeting which brings over 1,200 representatives from for-profit publishing houses together to discuss the industry. His talk, evidently, was on the gnawing issue of AI. "It's time to use it or get left behind," the CEO told attendees at his panel. According to [industry publication *Publishers Weekly*](), Reigert described AI as both "transformative" and "unsettling," adding that he's "not very happy that AI is here." Still, Reigert decided to stuff his doubts deep down and go after what really matters in life: profits. He continued to describe the partnership his company made with OpenAI, which includes a mandate that all employees use ChatGPT for "at least an hour daily." The publishing CEO even demonstrated the transformative power of AI live on stage by — we'**re** not kidding — creating a book ready to be listed on Amazon in just five minutes. He admitted the book was "terrible," but listed it on Kindle's Direct Publishing platform anyway before deleting it, *Publishers* reported. "As soon as Kara Swisher's biography was announced, there were half a dozen AI-generated clones that came to market well before publication," he told conference attendees, seemingly as a positive example of AI's abilities. Sure enough, Amazon has become a nightmare of [AI-generated books]() and [bot farming]() — a degraded ecosystem this CEO seems happy to roll around in, damn the consequences. **More on AI:** *[ChatGPT Is Blowing Up Marriages as Spouses Use AI to Attack Their Partners]()* ## Author At Futurism, I focus on the intersection of technology and power — examining the economics, history, and politics behind today’s dystopian headlines. As a writer, I’m interested in topics ranging from AI’s impact on labor to startups nobody asked for. My prior work includes bylines in Jacobin, Verso, and Blue Labyrinths. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Forbes, The Guardian, MIT Technology Review, Time, The Nation, Mother Jones, The Verge, and Wired. I grew up in Michigan, attending Central Michigan University as well as Ball State University, where I earned a master of music. I now live in Brooklyn with my girlfriend and our cat Ziti. On weekends, you can find me hunched over a cold pint arguing geopolitics with the other transplants. ### Author social links [Bluesky]() ## More - [Furious Judge Cancels Entire Trial After Finding Out Lawyers on Both Sides Used AI]() - [Woman Alarmed When Her Trusted Therapist Starts Recording Her With AI]() - [The Economy Has Spoken: Stuff That’s AI-Generated Has Almost Zero Value]() - [Support for Unions Is Spiking as AI Threatens Jobs]() - [Dozens of Humanoid Robots Gather for a Protest, Marching and Waving Signs]() - [Parents Horrified as Boomer Mawmaws Gift Children Blatant AI Slop Picture Books]() - [Robin Williams’ Daughter Horrified by People Creating AI Conspiracy Videos of Her Dad Long After His Death]() - [Judges Warn That AI-Generated Lawslop Is Getting So Bad It’s Threatening Courts’ Ability to Function]()