Mark Cuban Says Workers Could Get an Hour Back Every Day — With No Pay Cut. Here’s Why.
The famous billionaire is promoting a 35-hour workweek.
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Key Takeaways
- Mark Cuban says “smart, bigger companies” will let employees build and use AI agents, which will allow employees to “reduce their work day by an hour to start.”
- He frames this as a way to “reward people” with more time.
- Cuban’s vision for a shorter workweek aligns with that of other tech leaders, like Zoom CEO Eric Yuan.
More than 80% of Fortune 500 companies use AI agents — or virtual assistants that can complete complex tasks autonomously — according to Microsoft’s February Cyber Pulse report. Now, Mark Cuban says the technology could cut an hour from the average workday without reducing pay.
In a recent post on X, the billionaire entrepreneur stated that “smart, bigger companies” will allow their employees to generate and tap into AI agents. These agents will improve employee productivity and “reduce their work day by an hour to start,” Cuban predicted.
He added that employees will work less while earning the same pay. “Reward people doing the daily with more time,” Cuban wrote in the post. There is no evidence that employers won’t reduce pay in response to fewer hours worked.
Though AI agents are popular, they still have their limitations. A January survey from HR management platform Workday found that close to 40% of AI’s value is lost because workers have to constantly check it for inaccuracies and hallucinations. Only 14% of workers consistently get clear, error-free output from the technology.
Other executives agree
Cuban isn’t the only tech leader to tout AI’s ability to shorten the workday. Zoom CEO Eric Yuan said in 2024 that AI clones, or digital twins that are capable of speaking and interacting with people, can attend meetings on a user’s behalf, take calls, answer emails and even negotiate contracts. If these AI agents can handle repetitive tasks, many knowledge workers could move to a three- or four-day workweek, Yuan surmised.
JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon suggested in November that the next generation “will probably be working three and a half days a week in 20, 30, 40 years.” He argued that AI will both cut tedious tasks and kill some jobs, but ultimately improve quality of life and health outcomes.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk took it one step further and predicted in November that work would become entirely “optional” in “less than 20 years” thanks to advanced technology, such as AI and robotics. Musk, the richest person in the world, also said at a forum that AI would make money “irrelevant.”
AI allows anyone to innovate
Cuban said in an interview with Eric Bricker, chief medical officer of Compass Professional Health Services, last month that AI has fundamentally transformed who gets to innovate. Now, “some kid in a basement” can build a product or service that shakes up an industry, he explained.
“All it takes is one good idea,” Cuban said in the interview. “Why not you?”
Cuban added that AI tools like ChatGPT and Gemini have opened the door to innovation. A few years ago, a curious student without great teachers or materials might have hit a wall trying to dive into a subject. Now, he said, they can basically design their own curriculum from scratch.
Cuban caveated that AI can yield errors and hallucinations, but suggested the technology makes it easier to bring ideas to life overall.
“There’s nothing that can stop you anymore,” he said in the interview.
Key Takeaways
- Mark Cuban says “smart, bigger companies” will let employees build and use AI agents, which will allow employees to “reduce their work day by an hour to start.”
- He frames this as a way to “reward people” with more time.
- Cuban’s vision for a shorter workweek aligns with that of other tech leaders, like Zoom CEO Eric Yuan.
More than 80% of Fortune 500 companies use AI agents — or virtual assistants that can complete complex tasks autonomously — according to Microsoft’s February Cyber Pulse report. Now, Mark Cuban says the technology could cut an hour from the average workday without reducing pay.
In a recent post on X, the billionaire entrepreneur stated that “smart, bigger companies” will allow their employees to generate and tap into AI agents. These agents will improve employee productivity and “reduce their work day by an hour to start,” Cuban predicted.
He added that employees will work less while earning the same pay. “Reward people doing the daily with more time,” Cuban wrote in the post. There is no evidence that employers won’t reduce pay in response to fewer hours worked.
