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Workers may be hoping that AI can finally take over their grunt work in the new year – lightening their load and shortening the work week, or at least freeing up more space for life outside the office.
And it’s something young people in particular aspire to have: 74% of Gen Z rank work-life balance as a major consideration when choosing a job in 2025 – the highest of any generation – according to Randstad. And in more than 20 years of producing its Workmonitor report, this is the first time work-life balance goes beyond salary as a primary factor for all workers.
But as AI has reshaped business structures and improved productivity levels, many leaders are working harder than ever and expecting everyone else to follow their lead.
To push return to office mandates In addition to touting 24-hour availability, CEOs model a culture in which the lines between work and home life blur. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, for example, said he was working seven days a week this year, including holidays. Zoom CEO Eric Yuan simply conceded: “work is life.”
And by 2026, it is not certain that dreams of work-life balance will come true.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang
As the leader of the world’s most valuable company, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has a lot on his mind. Easing, however, does not appear to be part of the plan.
His work schedule is nothing short of rigorous – from the moment he wakes up until he hits the pillow again – seven days a week, including holidays. It’s a task fueled not only by the intensity of the AI race, but also by a lingering fear of what would happen if it ever gave up.
“You know the phrase ’30 days post-bankruptcy,’ which I’ve been using for 33 years,” Huang said in an episode of The Joe Rogan Experience released in December. “But the feeling doesn’t change. The feeling of vulnerability, the feeling of uncertainty, the feeling of insecurity doesn’t leave you.”
This mindset extends beyond Huang himself. His two children, who both work at Nvidia, are following in his footsteps and working for the semiconductor giant every day. For the Huang family, work is not just a job, it is a way of life.
Eric Yuan, CEO of Zoom
Video communications giant Zoom has had one of the biggest indirect impacts on the work-life balance debate, thanks to the ability for workers to connect from the comfort of a bed, a beach, or anywhere in between.
However, the journey to growing the company to over $25 billion in market capital has been revealed to Zoom’s CEO. Eric Yuan this work-life balance is a joke.
“I tell our team, ‘Guys, you know, there’s no way to balance. Work is life, life is work,'” Yuan said in an interview with the Grit podcast over the summer.
Yuan even admitted that he had no hobbies and that everything he did was dedicated to “family and Zoom.” But when a conflict arises and he has to choose between the two, the 55-year-old gives some respite: “When there is a conflict, guess what? Family first. That’s everything.”
TIAA Thasunda Brown Duckett, CEO
Thasunda Brown DuckettCEO of financial services company TIAA, has long not been a fan of the term “work-life balance” – often calling it an outright “lie” – and this year was no exception.
In a Mother’s Day social media post last spring, Duckett once again doubled down on her assessment.
“Let’s drop the charade of work-life balance,” she says. wrote. “The truth? Balance suggests perfection, and that’s a trap.”
“Instead, think of your life as a diversified portfolio. You only have 100% to give and many places to allocate. So give with intention. If motherhood gives 30% today, make it a powerful and present 30%,” she added.
For Duckett, having a constant assessment of how much time to devote to anything that needs attention in one’s life is what a truly healthy work-life relationship looks like.
“Some days you won’t feel like the best mom, leader, partner, or friend. But over time, when you lead with purpose, you are more than enough.”
Palantir CEO Alex Karp
This year has been a banner year for Palantir, with its stock price up about 140%.
For young people looking to take off their career, CEO Alex Karp sent out a warning this year: Avoid certain unnecessary things in life if you want to have any chance of success.
“I’ve never met anyone who was really successful and had a great social life at 20,” Karp said at the press conference. Economic Club of Chicago in May.
“If that’s what you want, that’s what you want, that’s great, but you’re not going to succeed and don’t blame anyone else.”
Although Karp’s comments might sting Gen Z, especially since they are the generation that give the most value When it comes to work-life balance, Karp believes that if you put in the time when you’re young, it will be worth it when you’re older and have a nicer job.
“Most people have something that they’re talented at and enjoy. Focus on that. Organize your whole life around that,” Karp added. “Don’t worry too much about money – it seems like hypocrisy now, but I never really did – and stay away from meth and you’ll do just fine.”
Ancient Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos
Jeff Bezos may no longer run Amazon on a day-to-day basis, but he remains deeply involved as chairman of the board, while growing Blue Origin and supporting new AI companies.
Like many of his peers, Bezos has long challenged the very idea of balance.
“I don’t like the word ‘balance’ because it implies compromise,” Bezos said during Italian Tech Week in October. “People often ask me, ‘How do you manage your work-life balance?’ » And I will say: “I like harmony between work and private life, because if you are happy at home, you will be better at work. If you are better at work, you will be better at home. These things go together. This is not a strict compromise.
This isn’t the first time Bezos has aired his grievances regarding the concept of work-life balance. In 2018, Bezos called it a “debilitating phrase” because it implied that one must give in order for the other to prosper. Instead, he likes to use the word “harmony” and compares the concept to a “circle.”
Jamie Dimon has been one of the most vocal advocates of full-time office work on Wall Street. Earlier this year, he called most of JPMorgan’s 300,000 people employees returning in person and crowned this push by opening the new $3 billion Manhattan headquarters.
Yet even though Dimon has taken a hard line on where work is done, he has long maintained that maintaining balance is ultimately an individual responsibility, not a corporate one.
“It’s your job to take care of your mind, your body, your spirit, your soul, your friends, your family, your health. Your job is not our job,” he said in a statement. clip from 2024 that has resurfaced This year.
