AI cost-cutting not a legal excuse to fire workers, Chinese court says

A court in China has ruled it illegal for a company to terminate an employee on the grounds that an artificial intelligence replacement would be cheaper, affirming limits on AI-driven job displacement amid a wave of anxiety over the technology’s potential to fuel unemployment.A 35-year-old worker surnamed Zhou who oversaw AI-generated responses at a fintech firm in Hangzhou, capital of east China’s Zhejiang province, was fired after refusing a demotion and pay cut. The company told him his role could be replaced by AI.“We don’t believe AI technology has reached the point where it can substantially replace human workers,” said Shi Guoqiang, a judge with the Hangzhou Intermediate People’s Court, in an interview with state broadcaster CCTV.