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Financial Firms Expect AI-Driven Job Cuts But Are Not Ready For Workforce Shift

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

September 7, 2026

Financial services firms are accelerating AI adoption, but many remain underprepared for the workforce changes that could follow, according to a PwC survey. Among more than 1,000 senior executives, 42% said their firms had modeled AI’s impact on workforce needs. Nearly 80% nevertheless expect their workforces to shrink by at least 20% over the next five years.

Firms Are Modeling Job Cuts, Not The Future Workforce

PwC said firms are focusing on how many roles AI could eliminate without fully defining the workforce they will need. Only half of companies that have started workforce modeling have examined how AI-driven process changes could affect staffing.

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The findings come from PwC’s 2026 Financial Services Workforce AI Survey of US financial services firms, covering hiring, skills, compensation and leadership.

Pressure To Adopt AI Is Rising

Ninety per cent of executives said companies need to become more comfortable moving quickly, while 77% said their own organizations are not moving fast enough on AI. Another 70% said their firms are already accelerating adoption to remain competitive.

Employee concerns are adding to the challenge. Forty-four per cent cited worries about job security or changing roles, while 43% said workers use AI only when required. Another 40% said employees feel overwhelmed by the pace of change, and 34% cited change fatigue.

AI Skills Are Gaining Value

Ninety-one per cent of executives said their firms were increasing pay for employees with AI skills, while 58% planned to link compensation to AI-driven productivity gains.

Eighty-six per cent said AI skills training was more valuable than an MBA for many new hires. Over the next year, 62% plan to hire AI specialists, 61% intend to retrain existing staff and 57% expect to use outside providers.

AI Will Affect Jobs Unevenly

PwC said AI is increasing the value of roles that rely on human judgment, critical thinking, team-building and creative problem-solving. These “professionalised” jobs are growing twice as quickly as roles where AI makes specialist tasks accessible to non-experts, while wages are rising 42% faster.

Most AI Investments Lack Measurable Returns

Nearly half of executives identified productivity as a primary workforce objective, while 48% want to reduce time spent on routine work and 46% are focused on embedding AI into daily workflows. Technology and software engineering, risk management and operations are expected to deliver the largest productivity gains. Yet 77% said most of their AI investments are not generating measurable returns.

PwC recommends setting performance benchmarks and financial targets before investing rather than adopting AI simply because competitors are doing so.

Data And Governance Remain Obstacles

Poor or fragmented data was identified by 41% of executives as the biggest obstacle to scaling AI across the workforce. Governance also remains unresolved. Nearly 90% said their firms have clear accountability for AI-agent decisions, but executives differed over who should bear responsibility when an AI system causes significant harm: 27% cited the CEO and board, 16% technology leaders, 15% risk and compliance leaders and 12% business unit leaders.

Meanwhile, 90% said unauthorized “shadow AI” use creates regulatory risk. PwC said firms need clearer accountability, formal deployment processes and tighter controls over approved AI tools.

The survey covered 1,004 director-level and above executives at US financial services companies with at least $500 million in revenue. Respondents were surveyed May 12–22, 2026, across asset and wealth management, banking and capital markets, insurance and private equity.

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Europe’s Deadly Summer Heat Exposed The Cost Of A Warming Continent

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

October 23, 2026

Europe experienced its deadliest summer for heat-related deaths on record in 2026, with an estimated 24,400 excess deaths linked to extreme temperatures across 30 countries. Researchers estimate that human-induced climate change was responsible for around 32,000 of the deaths attributed to heat in the study’s broader analysis, accounting for 65% of the total.

The findings highlight the growing public-health consequences of global warming, largely driven by fossil fuel use, as extreme heat becomes more frequent and severe.

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A Summer Of Dangerous Heat

Between June and August, heatwaves pushed temperatures in Western Europe to an average of 2.9°C above the 1991–2020 norm, with some days reaching 12°C above average. Nearly a third of estimated heat-related deaths occurred during a particularly intense heatwave between 17 June and 1 July.

“These numbers are a stark reminder that our hotter, more extreme summers are having an increasingly severe impact on public health,” said Dr Clair Barnes, a researcher at Imperial College London and co-author of the study.

The estimated toll exceeded previous peaks of around 29,000 deaths in summer 2022 and 28,000 in 2003 across the region studied.

How Researchers Estimated The Toll

Researchers modelled the relationship between temperature and mortality across 854 urban areas in the EU, UK, Norway and Switzerland, covering around 40% of the population in the 30 countries studied.

The analysis incorporated temperature records, age, socioeconomic conditions, environmental factors and access to healthcare. By comparing actual temperatures with those expected without human-induced warming, the team estimated the additional deaths attributable to climate change.

Final official mortality figures for summer 2026 are not yet available in many countries, and heat-related deaths are often underreported because their effects can be difficult to identify directly.

Older People Face The Greatest Risk

People aged 85 and over accounted for roughly half of the estimated deaths. However, the impact extended across age groups, with around 800 excess deaths among adults aged 20–44 and approximately 6,000 among people under 65.

Southern Europe experienced the highest mortality burden, reflecting hotter temperatures and other vulnerabilities, including air pollution, limited green space and unequal access to healthcare and heat-alert systems.

Italy, France And Spain Record Highest Toll

Italy recorded an estimated 13,303 heat-related excess deaths, followed by France with 7,268 and Spain with 6,824. Germany recorded around 6,340, while the UK saw an estimated 4,354 deaths.

In the UK, the heat also placed significant pressure on healthcare services. Andrew Hartle, Professor of Practice of Anaesthesia at Imperial College Healthcare, said demand during the summer resembled that of a severe winter virus season.

Cities Urged To Strengthen Heat Protection

Researchers say cities can reduce the risks through climate shelters, external shading and building retrofits, alongside measures to help residents avoid exposure during the hottest hours. Checking on vulnerable people, staying hydrated and following heat alerts are also important.

The researchers stress that adaptation must go hand in hand with reducing fossil fuel use to limit further warming. The findings underline that extreme heat is already a major public-health threat across Europe, with thousands of lives at risk each summer.