Want to be richer? ‘Rich Dad, Poor Dad’ author Robert Kiyosaki says, ‘AI will replace you’ IF…

Robert Kiyosaki, a renowned investor, financial literacy advocate and author of personal finance book Rich Dad, Poor Dad, has some advice for employees set to be impacted due to artificial intelligence (AI).

Amid news of Twitter co-founder and entrepreneur Jack Dorsey's fintech company Block firing over 4,000 of its 10,000 employees as it moves to embrace “intelligence tools” across operations, Kiyosaki shared a “Rich Dad Lesson” on social media.

‘AI will replace you' IF…

According to Kiyosaki, “AI makes the rich, richer”, he pointed to Dorsey's decision to cut 4,400 jobs at the company, not because they needed the money, but “because AI could do their jobs”.

He noted, “Dorsey admitted each employee made his company millions of dollars. (But) Dorsey fired 4,400 employees because AI could do their jobs.”

The ‘rich dad lesson’ here? “Think like an employee and AI will replace you. Think like an entrepreneur and hire AI to make you richer…. like Jack Dorsey,” according to the businessman.

About Jack Dorsey's Block Inc.

Founded in 2009 as Square, Block has evolved from a payments processor into a broader fintech player, offering peer-to-peer transfers, merchant services, and increasingly, consumer lending. In July last year, it joined the S&P 500 index, replacing Hess Corp. in the benchmark, following Chevron Corp.’s $53 billion acquisition of the energy producer.

Since 2024, the company has been retooling its business model and staffing, as it reorganised reporting lines and outlined a plan to operate more efficiently, the report said.

Bloomberg added that Block is trying to integrate peer-to-peer payments vehicle Cash App with its merchant-oriented service Square, while also growing other initiatives such as the Bitcoin mining business Proto, and an artificial intelligence (AI) tool, Goose. It also owns Afterpay.

Will AI claim more jobs? Concerns rise…

Notably, shares of Block soared as much as 27% in extended market trade following the announcement. According to a report by the Observer, this is a “dangerous precedent” as it incentivizes CEOs, board members and investors to fire people for market rewards.

Dorsey himself was not shy with the reason for the mass layoffs and believes that more companies will follow. “Intelligence tools have changed what it means to build and run a company. We're already seeing it internally. A significantly smaller team using the tools can do more and do it better,” he stated.

“I don't think we're early to this realisation. I think most companies are late. Within the next year, I believe the majority of companies will reach the same conclusion and make similar structural changes. I’d rather get there honestly and on our own terms than be forced into it reactively,” he added.

The trend seems likely. During Amazon's Q3 earnings call, while CEO Andy Jassy told analysts the company's job cuts were not AI or financially driven, he attributed the layoffs to having more people than needed. In 2025, Jassy also said he expected the company's corporate workforce to reduce as AI efficiencies increase.

'History shows humans can't predict impact': Devina Mehra

Last week, First Global founder and CMD Devina Mehra said that history shows that technology creates new jobs even while it disrupts the status quo. So, for those anxious over losing jobs due to AI, Mehra has some comfort to offer in the unknown.

“A whole lot of jobs that existed at that point in time were projected to disappear... and actually did vanish... but what happened next is the real story. Human beings have never been able to predict the eventual impact of any new technology on employment. Never.” she stated.