INTERVIEW: AI worsens labor mismatch as degree holders chase jobs machines replace SEOUL, January 07 (AJP) - The growing insecurity faced by college-educated workers in advanced economies stems from a structural mismatch: many young job seekers are targeting white-collar roles that artificial intelligence is rapidly automating, while labor shortages are emerging in sectors machines cannot replace, according to Canadian labor sociologist Barry Eidlin. Rather than signaling a collapse of work itself, the trend reflects a breakdown in how education systems, labor markets and public policy align skills with demand in the AI era. “The old system where companies hired young people and trained them for long careers has largely disappeared,” the professor Quebec-based McGill University told AJP in a recent Zoom interview. “Today, graduates are expected to arrive with experience — but you need a job to get experience, and experience to get a job.” Collapse of the school-to-work bridge For much of the postwar period, large firms in advanced economies operated internal labor markets, recruiting young workers and investing in their long-term development. That model has steadily eroded over the past four decades, leaving graduates to navigate fragmented, experience-driven labor markets on their own. As a result, Eidlin said, youth unemployment should not be framed as a failure of individual effort or ambition. “I try to get through to my students that it’s not about them,” he said. “It’s about broader macroeconomic and social trends that are largely beyond their control.” AI accelerates polarization Artificial intelligence has intensified these pressures, particularly for degree holders seeking entry-level or mid-skill office jobs — roles increasingly exposed to automation and outsourcing. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), as of Sept. 2025, individuals with a four-year college degree accounted for 25 percent of all unemployed people in the United States, marking an all-time high. This is the first time since the related data began to be compiled in 1992. The phenomenon is graver in Korea. According to the Ministry of Data and Statistics (MODS), the proportion of unemployed persons with a university degree or higher rose from 37.7 percent in 2010 to 47.8 percent in 2024, and further climbed to 49.6 percent in the first through third quarters of 2025. According to the Bank of Korea’s report titled “AI Expansion and the Contraction of Youth Employment,” of the 211,000 youth jobs lost over the past three years, 208,000 were in industries highly exposed to AI. While skepticism toward higher education has grown in the United States and Canada as graduate unemployment rises, Eidlin cautioned against interpreting the trend as evidence that college no longer pays off. “In terms of lifetime earnings, people with college degrees on average are still making quite a bit more,” he said. “But unemployment rates have to do with shifts within the structure of the labor market.” Job growth, he noted, is increasingly concentrated at the lower end of the wage and education spectrum. “You look at where the growth is in the job market and it is toward the bottom of the wage and education distribution,” Eidlin said. “Growth is in things like home-health aides and service work of various types, because a lot of this work cannot get automated.” By contrast, many mid-level jobs traditionally associated with higher education are precisely those most vulnerable to technological substitution. “A lot of jobs that require some degree of education are easier to automate or outsource,” he said. Jobs disappearing — and jobs not yet imagined Eidlin rejected alarmist narratives predicting a jobless future driven by artificial intelligence, arguing that history shows technological change reshapes work rather than eliminates it. “We tend to focus on the jobs that go away,” he said. “What we don’t think about as much are the jobs that are getting created as technological change increases and the world of work gets rearranged.” Those new roles, he added, are difficult to foresee precisely because they do not yet exist. “They’re hard to imagine,” he said. “That’s always been the case with major technological shifts.” Care work as the blind spot One area where labor demand is already overwhelming supply — and unlikely to be solved by machines — is social and care work, particularly as populations age across industrialized societies. “There are all kinds of socially necessary work that doesn’t get done because it’s not profitable,” Eidlin said. “Care work requires a lot of human labor, and it’s not something that can be automated.” Korea, facing one of the world’s fastest demographic declines, exemplifies the challenge. According to the 2025 Senior Statistics released by the Ministry of Data and Statistics on Sept. 29, 2025, the population aged 65 and older in South Korea reached 10.514 million, surpassing the 20 percent threshold for the first time and falling under UN-classified superaged society. “It’s a huge problem in Korea,” he said. “With aging populations and fewer children, the question becomes: who is going to take care of all these people?” Demand for elder care and childcare continues to rise, yet supply remains constrained, and costs remain prohibitive for many families. “There’s a crying need for more care workers and more childcare for young families,” Eidlin said. “That need is going unmet because when these services exist, they are incredibly expensive.” Eidlin argued that this gap presents a rare opportunity for governments to address both unemployment and welfare challenges simultaneously. “It creates a really perfect opportunity to address the unemployment problem while fulfilling socially important tasks and taking care of the broader population,” he said. Public investment in care work and job programs, he added, could absorb displaced workers while meeting urgent social needs that markets fail to provide. Political risks of stalled opportunity Beyond the labor market, Eidlin warned that prolonged insecurity among young people carries political risks. Degrading job quality, stagnant wages and weak representation have fueled labor unrest across regions, including Korea, North America, Europe and Latin America. “We’ve seen some of the biggest strike waves in decades,” he said. Yet economic frustration has not consistently translated into progressive political outcomes. According to Eidlin, the erosion of traditional labor-based political movements has left space for other forces to shape the narrative. “When there isn’t a strong left alternative, the political field opens up for narratives that shift blame,” he said. “It becomes ‘not the bosses, but immigrants,’ or ‘women entering the labor force,’ or ‘competition from other countries.’” Such dynamics, he said, have helped fuel the rise of far-right movements in many societies. For students and recent graduates navigating an increasingly uncertain labor market, Eidlin cautioned against advice that focuses solely on individual adaptation. “I think our expectations are actually too low,” he said. “Political and business elites have told people not to expect much and to be grateful for what they get.” The challenges young people face, he emphasized, are collective rather than personal. “The problems you are trying to solve are not individual problems,” Eidlin said. “They are social problems, and they can only be addressed collectively.” 2026-01-07 15:55:22

CES 2026: Everyday robotics in all sizes and for all purposes — China's Zeroth Robotics LAS VEGAS, January 07 (AJP) - Meet W1, inspired by WALL-E, the adorable cleaning robot from the Pixar movie. Don't let its big-eyed, cute looks fool you. The robot can follow users anywhere and carry up to 50 kilograms of gear, while its built-in camera enables autonomous filming — a feature likely to appeal to professional filmmakers and outdoor hobbyists alike. W1 is part of the domestic robot lineup from Zeroth Robotics, which is scheduled to open for preorder in the U.S. during the first quarter of this year. What differentiates the fledgling robotics company is its focus on humanoid and companion robots designed for everyday tasks, rather than industrial or warehouse use. "We want to build the world's first robot that can truly interact with the real world," said Zeroth Robotics CEO Renjie Guo in an interview with AJP on Tuesday at the company's booth in the North Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center during CES 2026. Although the company was founded in 2024, the 28-year-old entrepreneur laid out an expansive ambition. "Our goal is to become a companion for every member of the family," Guo said. Unlike many consumer robots that simply mount a camera onto a mobile platform, W1 is designed to film independently while navigating its surroundings. "Other robots just stick a camera on," Guo said. "Ours actually shoots footage on its own." The robot can self-navigate to avoid hazards such as water, and a single charge powers W1 for two to three hours. As production scales up, the company expects manufacturing capacity to reach as many as 3,000 units per day, Guo said. From mini companions to humanoids M1, a 38-centimeter-tall robot named after "Mini" is designed to operate on tabletops, M1 can also mount a balancing scooter to move around the home. The robot is positioned as a companion for seniors, offering gentle medication reminders and safety monitoring. Its functions extend to reading stories to children, playing interactive games, helping care for pets — and even assisting users in writing autobiographies. "We've built an app store and an agent store," Guo said. "Users can download functions tailored to their needs." At the top of the lineup is Jupiter, a full-sized humanoid robot named after the largest planet in the solar system. Guo described Jupiter as the company's most ambitious project. "Someday, this robot will be capable of basic AGI," he said. "It will go beyond being a companion — sometimes it will be a tool." For now, Jupiter is capable of teleoperation demonstrations and basic walking, though Guo acknowledged its movements still need refinement. A camera embedded in the robot's abdomen allows it to perceive and interact with its environment. Why CES, and why now Asked why Zeroth Robotics chose CES 2026 for its debut, Guo said the goal was to present both its products and long-term vision directly to consumers. "We wanted to show all of our products and our vision to consumers," he said. "A robot that's both a companion and a tool — that's what we're here to present." "A robot that truly enters the home and does things you never imagined — that's our one and only goal," Guo added. The company's CES showcase reflects how far — and how boldly — China has advanced in humanoid and consumer robotics, as startups increasingly push robots beyond factories and into everyday life. 2026-01-07 15:47:28

South Korea draws record FDI in 2025 as investor sentiment improves SEOUL, January 07 (AJP) - South Korea’s foreign direct investment (FDI) reached a record high last year, rebounding strongly in the second half after a sluggish start, government data showed on Wednesday. FDI commitments in 2025 rose 4.3 percent from a year earlier to $36.05 billion, the highest level on record, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Funds actually received increased 16.3 percent to $17.95 billion, the third-highest total to date. The ministry said the recovery came despite a 14.6 percent year-on-year decline in the first half, attributing the turnaround to improved investor sentiment following the launch of a new government. It cited restored confidence in the economy, reduced policy uncertainty and stronger expectations linked to the government’s push on artificial intelligence and investment promotion efforts tied to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Gyeongju. Greenfield investment for new or expanded facilities rose 7.1 percent to a record $28.59 billion, the ministry said. The investment included “quality” projects in advanced industries, such as Amazon Web Services’ artificial intelligence data center and Amkor Technology’s semiconductor back-end processing facilities, the ministry said. By sector, manufacturing investment rose 8.8 percent to $15.77 billion, reflecting increased investment in key materials used in advanced industries. Investment in chemicals surged 99.5 percent to $5.81 billion, while metals jumped 272.2 percent to $2.74 billion. Electrical and electronics investment fell 31.6 percent to $3.59 billion, and machinery, equipment and medical precision dropped 63.7 percent to $850 million. Investment in services rose 6.8 percent to $19.05 billion, driven by expanded investment in areas such as AI data centers and online platforms. By country, U.S. investment surged 86.6 percent to $9.77 billion. Investment from the European Union rose 35.7 percent to $6.92 billion. Japanese investment fell 28.1 percent to $4.40 billion, while Chinese investment declined 38 percent to $3.59 billion. 2026-01-07 15:46:08

Lunar New Year train tickets to go on sale next week SEOUL, January 7 (AJP) - Advance train tickets for the Lunar New Year break will go on sale next week, railway operator KORAIL said Wednesday. Tickets will be available online for a week starting next Thursday, about a month in advance, for trains running during the weeklong holiday from Feb. 13 to 18. The first two days of pre-booking will be reserved for senior citizens aged 65 and older, people with disabilities, and recipients of national merit honors. Ordinary citizens can book tickets for the remaining days until Jan. 21. However, booking dates may vary by destination. KORAIL said it has extended the booking period from two to three days to prevent overcrowding and server congestion. 2026-01-07 15:44:55

Siemens maps AI-led industrial shift at CES, with fusion reactors highlighting digital twin strategy LAS VEGAS (AJP) - At CES 2026, Siemens outlined a vision for an AI-driven restructuring of global industry, arguing that artificial intelligence is moving beyond software applications to become a foundational element of physical systems across manufacturing, logistics, energy, and infrastructure. At the center of that strategy is digital twin technology, which the company presented as the key mechanism for applying AI safely and reliably in the real world. Siemens framed digital twins not as visualization tools but as operational replicas of physical systems. By integrating design data, operating conditions, physical laws, and real-time sensor information, digital twins allow companies to test and validate thousands of scenarios before assets are built or deployed. According to Siemens, this capability is critical in industries where errors carry high costs or safety risks, and where traditional trial-and-error approaches are impractical. Roland Busch, president and CEO of Siemens, emphasized those constraints during his keynote on Jan. 6 at the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas. “In the industrial world, AI hallucinations are not acceptable,” Busch said. “AI that enters physical systems is no longer just a feature. It becomes a force with direct real-world impact.” Reliability and safety, he added, are prerequisites for deploying AI at industrial scale, making digital twins a necessary foundation rather than an optional enhancement. The company used nuclear fusion energy as its most prominent example of that approach in practice. Siemens highlighted its collaboration with Commonwealth Fusion Systems, a U.S.-based fusion startup, to demonstrate how digital twins can accelerate development in fields defined by extreme complexity and risk. Fusion reactors require precise coordination among magnets, cooling systems, and power controls, where even small design flaws can have serious consequences. Busch said such systems leave no room for real-world experimentation. “In these environments, trial and error in the physical world is not an option,” he said. Every design choice and operating condition must be validated in a digital twin, where physical behavior can be simulated repeatedly before any hardware is built. Siemens argued that this process shortens research and development timelines while reducing the likelihood of costly or dangerous failures. Siemens positioned the fusion work as a template rather than a one-off case. The same digital twin framework, the company said, can be applied to factories, logistics centers, and power grids. By combining virtual replicas of these systems with AI, operators can anticipate disruptions, optimize performance, and adjust operations in real time. Busch described this shift as a move away from reacting to problems after they occur toward designing systems that act proactively. Partnerships with major technology firms were presented as critical to making that model work at scale. Siemens pointed to its collaborations with NVIDIA and Microsoft as efforts to link AI-accelerated computing, simulation technologies, and industrial AI copilots into a single workflow spanning design, manufacturing, and operations. The company also showcased hands-free, smart-glasses-based guidance for shop-floor workers, positioning it as a way to improve safety and productivity while narrowing skill gaps. At CES 2026, Siemens focused less on individual product announcements than on defining how AI can be embedded into physical systems without compromising safety or reliability. By using fusion reactors as a proving ground for digital twin technology, the company sought to show how AI-driven simulation can reduce risk and compress development cycles in the most demanding industrial environments, before extending that same logic across manufacturing, logistics, energy, and infrastructure. 2026-01-07 15:44:38

Acting US envoy leaves Seoul after brief stint SEOUL, January 7 (AJP) - Acting U.S. Ambassador to Seoul Kevin Kim returned to the U.S. less than three months after assuming the post. According to diplomatic sources on Wednesday, Kim recently notified the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of his departure. He is believed to have left for the U.S. to spend Christmas and has not returned to Seoul, as he may be assigned a new role there. The Korean American, who handled North Korea-related affairs at the U.S. State Department from 2018 to 2020, Kim arrived in October last year, after being appointed to the interim post. He coordinated a summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in the southeastern city of Gyeongju. Kim's sudden departure raises concerns here, as the ambassador post has been vacant for almost a year. Former Ambassador Philip Goldberg left the position in January last year, and since then, two acting ambassadors, Kim and Joseph Yun, another Korean-American who previously served as U.S. special representative for North Korea policy, have temporarily filled the role. In a statement on its website, the U.S. Embassy in Seoul said, "James 'Jim' Heller is currently serving as the Chargé d'Affaires ad interim," adding that he "began his assignment in Seoul as the Deputy Chief of Mission" in July last year. The career diplomat, who "most recently served" in Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands, is a U.S. Army veteran. He holds a B.A. and M.A. from the University of Michigan and is a graduate of the Hopkins-Nanjing Center. 2026-01-07 15:12:19

Aekyung recalls popular 2080 toothpastes containing banned preservative SEOUL, January 07 (AJP) - Aekyung Industrial said on Wednesday it is voluntarily recalling six toothpaste products manufactured in China after testing detected a preservative ingredient that is banned from use in oral-care products in South Korea. The recalled items are 2080 Basic Toothpaste, 2080 Daily Care Toothpaste, 2080 Smart Care Plus Toothpaste, 2080 Classic Care Toothpaste, 2080 Triple Effect Alpha Fresh Toothpaste and 2080 Triple Effect Alpha Strong Toothpaste. The products were manufactured by Chinese firm Domy and imported and distributed in South Korea by Aekyung Industrial. The recall follows a quality inspection carried out by the company last month, which found trace amounts of triclosan, a preservative that is prohibited in oral-care products. Aekyung immediately suspended imports and shipments of the affected products and reported its recall plan to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, the company said. Consumers who purchased the recalled products can apply for a full refund through Aekyung Industrial’s customer service center or its website. Aekyung said all of its other toothpaste products are manufactured in South Korea and that no issues have been identified with their ingredients or quality. 2026-01-07 14:23:02

PPP leader apologizes for ex-president's martial law debacle SEOUL, January 7 (AJP) - Jang Dong-hyeok, the leader of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP), on Wednesday apologized for the disgraced former President Yoon Suk Yeol's martial law debacle last year. During a press conference at the party's headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul, he said Yoon's Dec. 3 declaration of martial law was a "wrong and inappropriate" measure, which caused "great confusion and inconvenience to the public and hurt party members who have upheld the constitutional order of liberal democracy." "We bear a heavy responsibility for failing to fulfill our role," Jang said. He then vowed to reflect deeply on past mistakes and to renew both himself and his party. Jang's apology came about four months after he was elected party leader in August last year, amid internal calls by some party members that the conservative party should distance itself from Yoon ahead of local elections in June to avoid another rout. He added that the party would consider changing its name to "reestablish its values and direction," a common strategy political parties often resort to in order to rebrand and regain public support. But it remains to be seen whether the PPP will be able to recover from its dismal public support and win over voters, especially after far-right YouTuber Ko Sung-kook joined the party as a member the previous day. 2026-01-07 14:17:00

HD Hyundai Heavy another US Navy ship repair contract SEOUL, January 07 (AJP) - HD Hyundai Heavy Industries has secured another maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) contract from the U.S. Navy, this time for a logistics support vessel assigned to the Navy’s 7th Fleet. The company said on Wednesday it recently won a regular overhaul project for the 41,000-ton cargo ship USNS Cesar Chavez, which was commissioned in 2012, without revealing the value of the contract. HD Hyundai Heavy Industries said it will begin work on Jan. 19 at a pier in Ulsan. The overhaul will cover more than 100 items, including repairs to the hull and structures, propulsion systems, electrical equipment and auxiliary machinery. The company plans to complete the work and deliver the vessel to the U.S. Navy in March. The contract follows the company’s completion of MRO work on the USNS Alan Shepard, its first U.S. Navy ship overhaul project, which was awarded in August. The Alan Shepard departed earlier this week after undergoing repairs. HD Hyundai Heavy said the initial Alan Shepard contract covered about 60 repair items, but the scope expanded significantly after an additional 100 items were identified during the overhaul process, extending the work schedule and substantially increasing the contract value. Ju Won-ho, president of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, said the company’s successful completion of its first U.S. Navy MRO project demonstrated its technological capabilities and operational expertise. "We plan to further strengthen efficiency and capacity to expand its presence in the U.S. naval ship MRO market," he said. 2026-01-07 13:49:46

Hyundai Steel Industry wins $450 million offshore wind contract in South Korea SEOUL, January 07 (AJP) - Hyundai Steel Industry, a unit of Hyundai Engineering & Construction, said on Wednesday it has won a $450-million contract to manufacture and install substructures for an offshore wind farm in South Jeolla Province. The company signed a deal with Hanwha Ocean covering fabrication and installation of substructures for the project. The contract is valued at 611.5 billion won ($450 million), with work scheduled to run from this month through January 2029. Hyundai Steel Industry said it will apply the “pre-piling” method for the first time in South Korea, a technique that involves installing piles before placing the substructure. The approach is expected to shorten construction schedules and improve installation accuracy. The Shinan Ui offshore wind farm is a large-scale project that will build 390 megawatts of generating capacity in waters southeast of Uido in Shinan County, South Jeolla Province. Hyundai Steel Industry has accumulated offshore wind construction experience at home and abroad since taking part in the Tamra offshore wind project in 2012, South Korea’s first commercial offshore wind farm. Its portfolio includes projects in Taiwan, Hallim on Jeju Island and Jaeun in South Jeolla Province. “This Shinan Ui project will be an opportunity to elevate South Korea’s offshore wind construction technology to the next level,” Park Yong-seop, executive director and head of Hyundai Steel Industry’s offshore wind business division, said in a statement. 2026-01-07 13:39:04