Last week at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, one thing was clear: the global conversation about AI and work has matured.

I joined colleagues from across Indeed in conversations with employers, journalists, and fellow business leaders about the state of work and where it is heading next. AI was certainly part of the discussion, but it was not the whole story. Many of the most substantive conversations focused on broader questions leaders are grappling with right now: where hiring demand is holding steady, where it’s shifting, and how to plan for growth amid ongoing uncertainty.

This year, those conversations felt more grounded and more ready for action.

We came to Davos with a clear point of view shaped by Indeed’s unique position in the labor market. We see both sides of the talent marketplace in real time, from job seeker behavior to employer demand. That vantage point allowed us to contribute clarity when leaders were looking to separate signal from noise.

What the data is telling us about the labor market

Throughout the week, we anchored conversations in insights from Indeed Hiring Lab, helping leaders understand both the current moment and the structural forces shaping what comes next. Our role was to bring context to help leaders ground decisions in data rather than headlines.

Our data points to labor markets worldwide that are cooling, but not collapsing. Hiring demand has moderated across many markets, yet long-term pressures remain firmly in place. Aging populations and declining immigration continue to constrain labor supply in many developed economies, even as growth slows. For employers, that means talent challenges are not disappearing. They are evolving.

You can explore the full set of insights we brought to Davos at indeed.com/davos.

AI is reshaping work, not eliminating it

When speaking about AI, the tone felt notably more balanced than in years past.

The focus was less on mass displacement and more on job redesign. Hiring Lab data continues to show that while AI exposure is increasing across many roles, AI is not yet eliminating jobs at scale. Instead, tasks within jobs are changing, skills requirements are evolving, and adoption remains in relatively early stages for most employers.

That nuance helped ground the conversation in responsibility. Leaders are increasingly focused on how AI can support productivity, improve hiring signals, and help people adapt as work changes.

This aligns closely with what we see every day on Indeed. AI is changing how work gets done, but people remain central to work itself.

What we heard from employers

Meeting directly with employers was a core reason we came to Davos.

Many leaders are operating in a complex hiring environment and looking for practical ways to move forward. How do you find the right talent faster? How do you improve signal quality in a crowded market that’s exacerbated by AI-generated applications?

Those questions naturally led to conversations about our new subscription service, Indeed Connect, and our AI-powered sourcing and screening tools. As enterprise employers look to hire efficiently without losing the human element, there is growing demand for technology that helps surface quality candidates, reduce friction, and support better decision-making.

The throughline was clarity. Better data and better tools help employers focus on what matters most: finding and engaging the right people.

Taking our insights to the stage

Indeed’s leadership also brought these perspectives to public audiences throughout the week.

At the Wall Street Journal House, our CEO Hisayuki “Deko” Idekoba shared what real-time labor market data is telling us today: a market shaped less by layoffs headlines and more by long-term demographic constraints. He explores why unemployment is unlikely to spike in developed economies, and how AI can help employers improve hiring signals in an era of application overload.

At the same venue, our Chief Economist Svenja Gudell joined a panel on AI and the changing world of work, offering a practical view of AI’s impact on the labor market based on Hiring Lab data. Her message to employers: experiment early, plan deliberately, and use data to guide workforce decisions as skills requirements evolve.

Svenja also brought those insights to a Financial Times panel alongside Anthropic and Merck, explaining how AI is reshaping jobs, and why data, skills evolution, and demographic realities matter more than headlines in understanding the future of work.

At the FQ Lounge, our Chief Marketing Officer James Whitemore participated in a discussion on the need for humanity in the age of AI, reinforcing that everything we do at Indeed is grounded in our mission to help people get jobs.

Across these moments, the goal was the same: to bring evidence, perspective, and leadership into the dialogue.

Listening to workers, too

Understanding the future of work requires listening to workers themselves.

Our 2025 Indeed Workforce Insights Survey, which captures perspectives across countries, generations, and backgrounds, reinforces much of what we discussed in Davos. Workers are pragmatic and thoughtful about change. They are focused on how new technologies show up in their day-to-day work and what they mean for long-term opportunity. At the same time, experiences vary meaningfully by geography, industry, and demographic group, underscoring the need for localized insight and strategies.

Leaving Davos clear-eyed and focused

At Indeed, our role is clear. We will continue to use data, technology, and insight to help people get jobs, help employers find the talent they need, and ensure that as work evolves, opportunity expands with it.