{
  "id": 14624244,
  "title": "AI job losses set to rein in office demand in developed Asia-Pacific economies: report",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/15/ai-job-losses-set-to-rein-in-office-demand-in-developed-asia-pacific",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-10-15T06:00:11.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "SCMP Business",
    "slug": "scmp-business",
    "url": "https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3370934/ai-job-losses-set-rein-office-demand-developed-asia-pacific-economies-report"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A new report from CBRE predicts a five percentage point drop in office space demand growth in major Asian-Pacific economies by 2030 due to AI job displacement. The consultancy expects 3.9% of office jobs in developed markets like Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Australia, and New Zealand to be vulnerable to AI-driven job loss. However, only 1.7% of jobs in developing markets such as China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam are at risk. Despite this, occupied office space is projected to grow, albeit at a slower pace of 13% by 2030 compared to the base case scenario. CBRE's head of Asia-Pacific research, Ada Choi, noted that the moderate displacement scenario is a downside sensitivity analysis, not a contraction prediction, and excludes potential upside from new AI-related businesses and occupations. Most Asia-Pacific markets are expected to fall under the moderate displacement assumption, except for Japan, which is likely to experience slow displacement due to organizational and cultural barriers. China could see rapid displacement, with all identified occupations automated within a short timeframe. The report suggests that office employment will still expand in such scenarios but slowly, by only 2% between 2025 and 2030. Hong Kong's office market is likely to be most sensitive to AI-related job displacement due to its high concentration of office-based employment, high labor costs, and strong digital readiness. However, slowing office completions in the region could help stabilize the market, as annual completions are projected to be only 3.2% of the estimated stock in 2028, down from 5.3% before the Covid-19 pandemic.",
  "summary": "A mild displacement of jobs across the Asia-Pacific region as companies expand their use of AI would trim five percentage points off growth in office space demand in the next few years, according to property consultancy CBRE. In a report released on Thursday it said 3.9 per cent of office jobs were vulnerable to artificial intelligence-driven displacement in developed markets in the region,…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": "The vulnerability of office-based roles to automation threatens to decelerate real estate demand across developed Asian-Pacific economies, even as slowing new completions help stabilize the broader commercial market.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "SCMP Tech",
        "title": "AI job losses set to rein in office demand in developed Asia-Pacific economies: report",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/15/ai-job-losses-set-to-rein-in-office-demand-in-developed-asia-pacific-14624603",
        "published": "2026-10-15T06:00:11.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}