Zoom ushered in the era of remote work — cutting commutes, reshaping office culture, and giving millions of workers more control over their schedules. Now, as artificial intelligence begins to redefine productivity standards, Zoom CEO Eric Yuan predicts an even bigger change on the horizon: a drastically shorter work week.
“I hate working five days,” Yuan told the Wall Street Journal. “I’m very clear that we really don’t need to work five days,” he said, adding that over the next five years, the work week will be reduced to three days.
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Calls for a shorter work week are nothing new. Yuan pointed to historic productivity advances — like Henry Ford’s assembly line, which helped reduce the work week from six to five days. But this time, he argues that AI can accelerate this change even further.
“I don’t think we need to work five days because literally all of us are going to employ a lot of digital agents,” Yuan said. In the future, he suggested, individuals could use thousands of AI agents to handle routine tasks like responding to emails or attending meetings.
Yuan himself has already experimented with the concept, using an AI version of himself to participate in an earnings call last year.
While this may free up more time for direct human interaction, Yuan emphasized that it will not eliminate work altogether.
“We can enjoy time at the beach, but we want kids to still find something new and exciting to work on.”
Fortune has reached out to Zoom for further comment.
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Not everything facilitates work-life balance
The movement for a shorter work week has been gaining momentum. A 2024 survey by the American Psychological Association (APA) found that 80% of workers believe they would be happier — and just as effective — working four days instead of five.
Much of this movement revolves around the “100-80-100” model: workers receive 100% of their salary while working 80% of the time, while maintaining 100% productivity. The idea, supported by Senator Bernie Sanders, gained traction through pilot programs led by 4 Day Week Global.
Workers reported improved mental and physical health and life satisfaction, as well as less stress, burnout, fatigue and work-family conflict.
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Some companies have experimented with an alternative approach: compressing the workday into four 10-hour days, but there are points to be noted.
A study found that longer hours can harm employees’ health and make it difficult to manage caregiving responsibilities, according to an APA analysis.
Although job satisfaction increases in this model, absenteeism and productivity often remain unchanged.
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Jamie Dimon and Sam Altman agree: a shortened work week is part of the future
While adoption of shortened work weeks is still limited, the idea is increasingly present among business leaders — especially as AI transforms the job market.
JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon recently predicted that the work week could, in the future, shrink to just three and a half days.
“I believe that 30 years from now, your kids will probably work three and a half days a week,” Dimon told CBS News in an interview aired earlier this month.
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In his most recent letter to shareholders, Dimon added that advances in AI will not only transform industries but could also help people live “longer and safer” lives, in part by reducing how much they need to work.
Getting there, however, will take time and coordination. OpenAI and its CEO, Sam Altman, have been encouraging companies and policymakers to start experimenting now.
“Encourage employers and unions to conduct pilot projects with defined durations of 32-hour/four-day work weeks, without salary reduction and maintaining constant production and service levels,” OpenAI recommended in its recent policy document, “Industrial Policy for the Intelligence Age: Ideas to Keep People First.”
“Then convert the regained hours into a permanently shorter week, accruable paid time off, or both.”
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