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TL;DR
A preprint based on a 2026 survey of 8,234 working-age adults finds that many respondents value purpose, colleagues and recognition alongside pay. About one in five said they would not quit for guaranteed income equal to 120% of their salary, but the survey measures stated preferences, not behavior or AI’s effects on employment.
A new arXiv preprint based on a survey of 8,234 working-age adults finds that about one in five respondents would not leave work even if offered guaranteed income equal to 120% of their salary, with health coverage, pensions and paid leave preserved. The study, by Julian Jacobs of the University of Oxford and Google DeepMind, examines what workers value beyond pay as artificial intelligence raises questions about the future of jobs; its results reflect stated answers to hypothetical questions, not observed decisions or proof of AI’s effects.
The survey was conducted in June and July 2026 among adults in the United Kingdom, United States, Denmark and India. Respondents were asked at what level of guaranteed income, starting at 60% of their current salary and rising in 10-point steps to 120%, they would voluntarily quit. The offer included continued healthcare, pension and paid leave, according to the paper.
Across the four-country sample, a slight majority said they would leave by an offer of 80% of salary; around three-quarters said they would leave at 100%. About 20% remained at 120%. The paper reports that the holdout proportion was similar across household-income groups: 21% among lower-income respondents, 18% in the middle group and 22% among higher-income respondents.
A separate survey battery grouped workers’ stated priorities into four profiles. Among respondents the study could classify, 33% were mainly motivated by the work itself, including purpose, learning and contribution; 23% by colleagues and belonging; 17% by status and recognition; and 26% by pay and benefits. The paper’s figure says 73.7% placed a non-financial reason first. These categories describe the researchers’ classification of responses, not fixed traits or measured workplace behavior.
WHAT WORK IS FOR, ACCORDING TO WORKERS
Three in four put something other than pay first
The paper sorts workers by what they rate most important in their job. In its own figure, 73.7% of classified workers put a non-money reason first.
The work itself: purpose, learning, contributing to society.
Pay and benefits come first.
Belonging, colleagues, meeting people.
Recognition and prestige.
Pay-first share, by country
Share of classified workers whose top value is pay and benefits
Meaning is not a luxury
Share driven by the work itself (intrinsic), by household income third
Also about a third in craft and trade jobs (33%) and in services and sales (31%).
Shares of the 6,224 working respondents the paper could classify; 2,010 respondents (non-working, or no clear top value) were left out. 2,000 tied answers were assigned by a tie-break rule. Satisfied with their job: 81%.
Source: Jacobs, What is Work For?, arXiv:2610.39375v1, 29 Oct 2026 · preprint, not peer-reviewed · survey of 8,234 working-age adults in the UK, US, Denmark and India by More in Common, June–July 2026, supported by Google DeepMind.
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Why Pay May Not Replace Work
The findings speak to a policy question likely to grow as employers adopt AI: if technology reduces demand for some kinds of labor, can income support compensate for what people lose when they stop working? Jacobs argues that a basic income may be necessary in an AI-related labor shock, while warning that money alone could fail to replace work’s other roles, including social connection, purpose and recognition.
That argument matters for governments weighing income support and for employers considering how to redesign jobs. If workers value belonging or contribution as well as wages, a change in pay alone may not address the full effect of job displacement. But the survey does not establish that those values will lead people to oppose automation, or that purpose-focused workers will experience greater harm. It reports preferences and associations, not the consequences of a particular policy or technology.
The paper also reports a gap in perceived risk: 40% of white-collar respondents considered it at least somewhat likely that AI would replace their job within ten years, compared with 29% of manual and service workers. That is a measure of respondents’ expectations, not a forecast of actual job losses.
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How the Survey Tested Work Values
The study, titled What is Work For? Labor, Politics, and Meaning in the Age of AI, was posted to arXiv on October 29, 2026. It is a 39-page, single-author preprint and has not been peer-reviewed. The survey was fielded by polling organization More in Common, with national quotas for age, gender, education and region. The paper says its survey was supported by Google DeepMind, Jacobs’s employer, and says its views do not necessarily reflect those of Oxford or DeepMind.
To identify work values, respondents rated eight aspects of a job, including pay, benefits, purpose, learning, contribution to society, belonging, social contact and status. The study then examined responses to the income-for-quitting question, as well as views on AI and politics. Its statistical models control for factors including income, occupation, age, gender, education, part-time status and country. Those controls can help account for differences in the sample, but they do not turn a one-time survey into a causal experiment.
The country results also require care. The share who would stay at 120% was 16.0% in the UK, 17.9% in the US and Denmark, and 28.8% in India. The paper notes that its Indian online sample was younger, more urban and more highly educated than India’s population overall, limiting how broadly that country figure can be applied.
“A basic income “may indeed be necessary” in an AI labor shock, but “could ultimately fail to compensate workers” for what work gives beyond money.”
— Julian Jacobs, author of the preprint
What the Survey Cannot Establish
The survey records what people said they would do in a hypothetical offer. It does not track actual resignations, test whether respondents would accept a guaranteed-income policy in practice, or measure how changes in work affect wellbeing over time. The reported proportions should not be treated as predictions of how many workers would quit if AI eliminated jobs.
The study is also a cross-sectional preprint, so its findings may change after review or in later versions. Its authors’ groupings depend on how survey responses are classified, and online samples may not represent every worker equally. The paper’s political findings are particularly limited: although some purpose- and community-oriented respondents became more pessimistic when they expected AI to harm jobs in their industry, the reported tables did not show significant differences in populist vote intention between the groups.
It remains unclear how these stated priorities vary across industries, how they change as AI tools are introduced, and whether alternative job designs or income policies can preserve the non-financial benefits respondents value. The survey does not establish that AI has caused the reported concerns or that a basic income would resolve them.
Peer Review and Further Evidence
The immediate next step is scrutiny of the October 29 preprint, including its survey questions, sampling choices and statistical methods. The paper has not been peer-reviewed, and its author says findings may change in later versions. No publication schedule or follow-up study is specified in the source material.
For stronger evidence about workplace effects, future research would need to follow workers over time as AI adoption and job conditions change, and compare stated preferences with actual decisions. Until then, the paper offers an early snapshot of how surveyed adults weigh pay against purpose, community and recognition—not a definitive account of what AI will do to employment or what policy response will work.
Key Questions
What did the survey find about quitting for guaranteed income?
About one in five respondents said they would not quit at a guaranteed offer equal to 120% of their salary, with health coverage, pension and paid leave retained. Most said they would leave at lower offers, but the results are hypothetical responses rather than observed choices.
What reasons for working did respondents name?
Among respondents the study classified, 33% were mainly driven by the work itself, 23% by colleagues and belonging, 17% by status and recognition, and 26% by pay and benefits. The figures reflect the paper’s categories and survey answers.
Does the paper show that AI is replacing these workers?
No. It reports respondents’ expectations about AI and their work values; it does not document job losses caused by AI or predict how many jobs will be replaced.
Has the paper been peer-reviewed?
No. It was posted to arXiv on October 29, 2026 as a preprint. Its findings may change in later versions or after review.
Can the results be applied equally across the four countries?
The survey covered the UK, US, Denmark and India, but the author notes that the Indian online sample was younger, more urban and more highly educated than India’s population overall. The country-specific results should be read with that limitation in mind.
Source: ThorstenMeyerAI.com
