Zoho co-founder Sridhar Vembu recently ignited a wide-ranging debate on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) by exploring a provocative question: What happens to human purpose if AI takes over all jobs?

In his thought-provoking post, Vembu imagined a future where artificial intelligence has advanced to the point of handling all forms of work, including software development. He presented a scenario in which even software engineers like himself are rendered obsolete by fully autonomous AI systems. However, he was quick to clarify that such a future is still far off, and current AI technologies are nowhere near achieving total automation.

Vembu emphasized that the deeper issue isn’t the disappearance of work itself, but how society chooses to manage the transition. As AI continues to reshape industries, he stressed the importance of addressing how the economic value generated by automation will be distributed. According to him, the central challenge will shift from technical feasibility to political economy — specifically, how income, access to goods, and opportunity are shared in a world where traditional employment may become scarce.

While some users on X supported Vembu’s hopeful vision of humans finding meaning beyond jobs, others expressed concern over the potential loss of identity, motivation, and financial stability in an AI-dominated future.

Vembu concluded on a reflective note, expressing hope that humanity will ultimately adapt — not by resisting AI, but by rethinking the foundations of value, purpose, and community in a post-work world.