When Skill Value Approaches Zero: Rethinking Labor in the Age of AI

In today’s fast-changing world, doing good work is no longer enough. What matters now is whether that work still holds value—and whether you can offer something others can’t.

At its core, work means selling your labor in exchange for money. The amount you’re paid depends on how much your labor is needed (demand) and how many others can offer the same thing (supply). In economics, this is shown as the supply and demand curve, and the point where the two curves meet is considered the “ideal” point for society.

But here’s the catch: that ideal point doesn’t always benefit individuals equally. What’s good for the market may not be good for you. In the labor market, the gap between what society wants and what individuals want can be large.

Some people get paid more or less than others even when they have similar skills. These differences may not be visible on a large scale, but they’re very real on a personal level.

And this gap may grow even bigger with the rise of AI.

You might think the biggest difference will be between those who use AI and those who don’t. But in reality, the difference between someone who uses AI well and someone who uses it very well might not be so large. AI is narrowing the gap between experts and non-experts.

Take coding, for example. A highly skilled software engineer and a beginner using AI tools like VibeCoding might now produce similar outputs. So the value of being “highly skilled” in a technical sense is starting to fade.

If hard skills become easier to access, then the things that set people apart will shift. That’s where soft skills come in.

Soft skills—like communication, empathy, collaboration, and adaptability—are harder to teach, harder to copy, and much harder to replace with AI. These are the human qualities that make someone not just employable, but irreplaceable.

Think of hard skills as tools. In the past, having rare tools gave you an advantage. But now, everyone has access to powerful AI tools. What matters more is how you use those tools—and how well you connect with others while doing it.

In the end, your value as a worker will depend less on what you can do, and more on who you are. Your personality, your maturity, your ability to work with people and solve problems—these are the things AI can’t take away. And they may be the most important parts of your labor in the years to come.