Will Artificial Intelligence Lead the Way to the Unemployment Line? 'Dirty Jobs' Host Mike Rowe Says Yes

Whenever I hear about someone being 100 years old, one of the first things I think of is how much history they have witnessed in their lifetime. Today's centenarians were alive when radio, landline telephone, and Ford Model Ts were the height of technology, and now, for the home computers, cell phones, and electric cars of today. They have also witnessed the changes in American jobs over the past 100 years. In 1951, my dad's first job was as a pin setter in a bowling alley when he was 15. Pinsetters being replaced by technology is a natural progression. But now, a familiar name is sounding the alarm that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is coming for even more American jobs.

Gave my business card to a guy yesterday who just finished up a $36,000 tree job in Madison Alabama.

I’m clearly cutting down the wrong trees.

But shocker he doesn’t like grinding stumps so maybe I can expand my business clients.
— BlueCollarInvestor (@BlueCollarInvr) July 12, 2025

Mike Rowe is the host of the Discovery Channel's "Dirty Jobs." He has long been an advocate for America's blue-collar workers, and getting the message out to young people that college is not always what it's cracked up to be, and that learning a skill or trade that is in high demand could be their best career decision in light of the emergence of AI. On Tuesday, Rowe spoke at the Pennsylvania Energy and Innovation Summit and issued a dire warning. He said:

"We've been telling kids for 15 years to code. 'Learn to code,' we said. Yeah, well AI is coming for the coders. It’s not coming for the welders, the plumbers, the steamfitters, the pipefitters, the HVAC, or the electricians.”

Rowe went on to illustrate the ever-deepening shortage of blue-collar workers in the U.S. One of the most startling things: He claimed that Black Rock CEO Larry Fink once said to him that over the next several years, the U.S. will need roughly 500,000 electricians. Some of the other statistics are eye-opening as well. The automotive industry is short 80,000 collision repair technicians. The energy industry is short 300,000 to 500,000 employees, and manufacturing is short 400,000 employees.

What's even more serious is that Rowe rightly argues that the shortage of blue-collar workers is a national security issue. He went on to say:

"Not a week goes by that the Blue Forge Alliance, who oversees our maritime industrial base - that's 15,000 individual companies who are collectively charged with building and delivering nuclear-powered subs to the Navy ... calls and says "We're having a hell of a time finding tradespeople. Can you help?"

If someone wants to start one of these businesses they can make a great living using half a brain.

cabinet builder
floor Installer
electrician
hvac tech
carpenter
plumber
roofer
welder

It isn't genius work, it's blue collar.
It's also very lucrative.
— ContractorKeith (@contractorkeith) May 1, 2025

Rowe said when he asked how many were needed, the answer was 140,000 over the next seven years, but 80,000 right now. He added:

"These are our submarines. Things go hypersonic, a little sideways with China, Taiwan, our aircraft carriers are no longer the point of the spear. They're vulnerable. Our submarines matter, and these guys have a pinch point because they can't find welders and electricians to get them built."

Other CEOs are backing up Mike Rowe's assertion. Jim Farley, CEO of Ford Motors, has predicted that AI will "replace literally half of all white-collar workers in the US." In June, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy announced that it would trim its workforce due to the use of AI.

ALSO READ: Does a College Degree Automatically Mean Success? More Young People Say No

America's traditional four-year universities have become nothing but high-priced indoctrination centers. Students graduate from these institutions with an average debt of $29,000 for a Bachelor's degree. It goes up from there. Trade school lasts between 18-24 months, with far less debt, if any, and students can immediately enter the job market.

Rowe said of learning a skill that is in demand, "That's going to resonate politically, that's going to resonate practically. It's gonna move the needle." Practical resonance, at least for the young people Rowe is speaking to, is working at a high-salary job while your friends are paying off their student loans.

Mike Rowe: “We’ve been telling kids for 15 years to learn to code.”

“Well, AI is coming for the coders.”

“It’s not coming for the welders, the plumbers, the steamfitters, the pipefitters, the HVAC, or the electricians.”

“In Aspen, I sat and listened to Larry Fink say we need… pic.twitter.com/3ZpvEgP0Ha
— Holden Culotta (@Holden_Culotta) July 16, 2025

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