Artificial intelligence and robotics may undercut the economic drive behind mass migration to the United States, senior fellow Christopher Rufo warned on X on September 14, 2026.
AI Could Reduce Incentives for Mass Migration, Rufo Argues
Rufo explained that low‑skilled jobs in agriculture, construction, food service, eldercare and cleaning currently attract migrants because wages in the U.S. exceed those in their home countries.
If automation replaces a larger share of those positions, the financial incentive for people to cross the border disappears, he added.
“The Right needs to understand that rapid progress in AI and robotics will significantly undermine the incentives for mass migration,” Rufo wrote, “Accelerate robots, decelerate migration. Mutually reinforcing system.”
He argued that President Trump could block undocumented migrants from the financial system tomorrow, denying them bank accounts, payroll access and remittance capabilities, but has not done so because powerful industry lobbies depend on cheap labor.
“Trump could lock the undocumented out of the financial system tomorrow—if you don’t have paperwork, you suddenly have no bank account, no ability to get on a payroll, no ability to send remittances, Rufo said.”
He added that a shift to robot labor priced at $15‑20 per hour would erode those industries’ political leverage and diminish the push for open borders.
Incentive‑based policy, Rufo noted, means that solving immigration problems requires altering the underlying economic motivations rather than issuing new legislation.
AI‑driven automation could therefore reshape the migration calculus, reducing the demand for low‑skill labor and weakening the coalition that sustains current border policies, though it will not eliminate all immigration challenges.
The Manhattan Institute fellow concluded that the United States must recognize how technology reshapes labor markets if it hopes to address the root causes of mass migration.
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