When Everyone Is Retired

Life in a Post-Work World Shaped by AI

Introduction

Imagine a typical Tuesday in the not-so-distant future. The morning commute is a relic of history, rush hour is gone, and alarm clocks collect dust. In this world, advanced AI and robots handle most of the work – from manufacturing and farming to accounting and medical diagnostics. For the first time in human history, work has become truly optional. In effect, everyone is “retired,” regardless of age. What would people do all day? Would societies flourish in newfound freedom, or falter from lack of structure and purpose? The idea of a post-labor world sparks equal parts utopian daydream and dystopian anxiety.

This article explores that future through a revealing analogy: retirement. We already have millions of “post-work” people in our midst – retirees – and decades of research on how leaving the workforce affects human happiness, health, and sense of purpose. By examining what happens when individuals stop working (both the good and the bad), we can project how an entire society might adapt when a job is no longer the center of life. Recent studies on retirement satisfaction, early retirees versus traditional retirees, and the importance of health and social well-being will guide us, focusing on data from OECD countries for consistency. We’ll also weave in light economic perspectives on universal basic income (UBI) and a “post-scarcity” economy where robots provide abundance.

It’s a thought experiment on a grand scale: if AI and automation gave everyone a permanent vacation, would it feel like paradise or purgatory? By balancing optimistic and pessimistic scenarios – and learning from real retirees’ experiences – we hope to paint a vivid picture of how society might transform when “everyone is retired.”