Vinod Khosla says AI job fears will dominate the 2028 election

In short: Vinod Khosla predicts that fear of AI-driven job losses will be the biggest issue in the 2028 US presidential election.

What's going on

Vinod Khosla, a billionaire venture capitalist and an investor in OpenAI, said voter anxiety about AI replacing jobs will reshape US politics by 2028. He made the comments at the Hill & Valley Forum in March 2026, according to the Financial Times.

Khosla argues that the worry will not just be about new technology, but about day to day security for families. He estimates that by 2030, about 80% of jobs could become “AI-capable,” meaning software could do at least a big part of the work (like a very fast assistant that can handle tasks people do now). He warned this could lead to “massive job dislocation,” which is a blunt way of saying many people may need to switch roles or industries.

He also said politics, not the technology itself, is the biggest barrier to wider AI use. As an example, he pointed to a proposed bill in the New York State legislature that would ban AI from giving medical or legal advice. Khosla described that kind of proposal as a sign that fear is already driving policy.

What to watch

Khosla has floated a major tax change as one response. He says the US could eliminate income taxes for people earning under $100,000 starting in 2030, and make up the difference by taxing capital gains more like regular income (capital gains are profits from selling things like stocks). Whether ideas like this gain support, and whether more states try to restrict AI in sensitive areas, could shape the 2028 campaign.

Source: Financial Times