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Wharton professor Ethan Mollick’s new book, Co-Existence: The Next Phase of AI, argues that people should use AI to understand how it may fit into their lives and work. His case comes as AI agents become capable of carrying out longer tasks, even as concerns about jobs, safety and overreliance remain.

Wharton professor Ethan Mollick is urging people to experiment with artificial intelligence as AI agents begin handling longer tasks, a practical response to technology that is advancing alongside concerns about job losses and safety. In his new book, Co-Existence: The Next Phase of AI, Mollick argues that using AI is a way to understand how it could change everyday life and work, not a reason to dismiss the risks.

Mollick, an associate professor at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and faculty director of its Generative AI Labs, says many people have not yet grasped what newer AI agents can do. Unlike a chatbot that responds one prompt at a time, an agent can carry out a sequence of actions toward a requested result, sometimes with less step-by-step direction from the user.

In an interview with Vox, Mollick said the systems have improved on earlier problems such as requiring constant guidance and producing incorrect information. He said users can now sometimes get hours, days or weeks of work from an AI system. That is his assessment of the technology’s capabilities; the source does not provide independent performance tests or establish how consistently agents can complete such work.

Mollick described using an agent to cancel an $8 monthly airline Wi-Fi subscription. He said he asked it to handle the cancellation, after which it contacted customer service and the subscription ended. The example shows how an agent might reduce routine online tasks, but the account does not specify which system he used or how the service handled access, permission and verification.

AI Agents Move Into Routine Tasks

The appeal of agents is that they may take on the administrative work involved in everyday tasks, from contacting customer service to making reservations or completing a purchase. The source describes companies and products moving in that direction: Walmart has enabled agent-assisted shopping, while Apple has announced an AI-ready home display that can control lights. These developments suggest AI may be encountered through ordinary services and devices, not just dedicated chatbots.

That convenience comes with a personal trade-off. If people hand more decisions and tasks to AI, they may save time but lose practice doing the work themselves or become less able to judge when a system is wrong. Mollick told Vox, “I deeply worry that if I de-skill myself entirely, I won’t even know how computers work.” His concern points to a practical question for users: which tasks are worth delegating, and which skills should remain familiar?

The stakes also extend beyond convenience. A Pew Research Center study published in August, as cited in the source, found that 71 percent of Americans thought AI would lead to fewer jobs over the next two decades, up seven percentage points from two years earlier. The figure reflects public expectations, not a prediction that a specified number of jobs will disappear. It helps explain why advice to try AI may feel complicated for workers concerned that the same technology could make their roles less secure.

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From Chatbots to AI Agents

The source describes a mixed period for AI. It reports employee departures at Anthropic and Google linked to concerns about the technology, AI-related security incidents, major Microsoft buyout offers and warnings from economists about a possible bubble. It also points to uses in scientific research and mathematics. These claims describe the range of developments covered in the source; they do not establish that every reported incident or forecast has been independently verified.

Against that backdrop, Mollick’s argument is less about claiming that AI is safe or beneficial in every case than about building direct experience with a fast-changing tool. He has written about AI through his newsletter, One Useful Thing, and in his role at Wharton’s Generative AI Labs. His central proposition, as presented in the source, is that people should learn what AI can and cannot do by using it, while recognizing that its effects on work and daily life may be positive for some and harmful for others.

““You need to use AI in order to understand it.””

— Ethan Mollick, Wharton professor, speaking to Vox

Reliability, Access and Job Effects

The source does not identify the agent used in Mollick’s subscription example, detail what information or account permissions it needed, or explain how users can check the actions it took. It also does not establish how reliable agents are across different services, users or types of work. Mollick’s account is an individual example, not a controlled test.

The wider effects remain unsettled. The source reports concern about employment and AI-related security risks, but it does not quantify how many jobs may change or disappear, nor does it establish whether recent reports of AI-related incidents reflect a lasting trend. The extent to which people will adopt personal agents—and how companies will govern them—also remains unclear.

Practical Use Will Test the Promise

As agents are added to shopping, home devices and other services, their day-to-day performance will become easier for people to judge. Users will need to see whether systems complete tasks accurately, communicate what they have done and allow people to review or reverse consequential actions. The source names no specific forthcoming test, regulatory decision or product launch date.

For now, Mollick’s advice is to gain experience rather than assume AI is either a passing novelty or a dependable replacement for human judgment. Trying low-stakes tasks can show where a tool saves effort and where it makes mistakes. The broader test will be whether AI’s convenience can be balanced against privacy, reliability, job disruption and the risk of losing skills people still need.

Key Questions

What is Ethan Mollick’s main advice about AI?

Mollick argues that people should use AI to understand it and consider how it may fit into their work and everyday lives, while remaining aware of its risks.

What is an AI agent?

An AI agent is a system that can carry out a sequence of actions toward a requested task, rather than only responding to one prompt at a time. The source says newer agents may need less step-by-step guidance, but does not establish how reliably they work in general.

What everyday task did Mollick say an agent completed?

Mollick told Vox that an agent helped cancel his $8 monthly airline Wi-Fi subscription by dealing with customer service. The source does not name the system or provide details about its permissions.

Does the source show that AI will eliminate jobs?

No. It cites a Pew Research Center survey in which 71 percent of Americans expected AI to lead to fewer jobs over the next two decades. That is a measure of public opinion, not evidence that a particular number of jobs will be lost.

Source: Vox