IKEA | Firm drastically reshapes jobs as AI takes menial tasks

Swedish furniture giant IKEA this week announced a strategic shift in its workforce, as artificial intelligence takes over menial tasks.

The decision comes as the company places a heavy bet on a blended approach to AI-human synergy, aiming to ‘revolutionise the way customers interact with the brand’ and redefine the role of its employees.

By harnessing the power of AI, the company has sought to free up its workforce to focus on more personalised and value-added services, while also optimising its sales strategy.

The firm says it has trained 8,500 call centre workers as interior design advisers since 2021, while Billie (the name of the newly-utilised AI) has handled 47% of customers' queries to call centres over the past two years.