TL;DR

Jersey could expand its economic output without increasing population through AI “synthetic workers,” according to Digital Jersey’s CEO Tony Moretta. The approach addresses the island’s recruitment challenges while avoiding pressures on housing and infrastructure that traditional workforce expansion would create.

The Recruitment Challenge

Jersey, like many jurisdictions, faces significant recruitment difficulties. Moretta argues the island needs to “move to the next step which is automating tasks using AI agents.”

The alternative—expanding the financial services workforce by approximately 14,000 people—is not feasible “because of the impact that would have on housing and other aspects,” according to Moretta.

Synthetic workers would “do a lot of the work more quickly, more competitively” and “increase the amount of business we can cope with as an island.”

Jobs: Threat or Opportunity?

Moretta pushes back against the narrative that AI will eliminate jobs. The real threat, he argues, lies elsewhere: “I think we will lose jobs if we don’t have a skilled workforce, if employers do not offer their workers the opportunity to upskill, to reskill, if we don’t give school leavers the skills they need in the new business roles that are going to come up.”

He maintains that “you still need individuals working with AI, you still need humans in the loop, but we have to make sure those humans have the skills to use AI.”

Mixed Public Reactions

Local residents expressed varied views. Photographer Elizabeth Bosch acknowledged AI’s potential utility but raised copyright concerns and worried about the older generation’s ability to identify AI-generated content. Harry Brown was more sceptical, calling reliance on AI “lazy” and noting the prevalence of AI-generated content on social media as “quite scary.”

Looking Forward

Digital Jersey’s Annual Review focuses on AI workplace adoption, with speakers addressing the impact of tech-intensive industries on the island’s economy. For a jurisdiction built on financial services, the balance between AI-driven efficiency and workforce development may define its competitive position in the years ahead.