Ethan Choi, a partner at Khosla Ventures, has shared bold predictions for 2026 that paint a transformative picture of AI’s impact on society and the workplace. In an exclusive interview, Choi forecasts that robotics will experience its “GPT-3 moment” in 2026—not a mass consumer breakthrough like ChatGPT, but a foundational leap demonstrating human-level intelligence applied to the physical world. This advancement will mark the beginning of true general-purpose robotics capable of mastering complex spatial, temporal, and embodied tasks.
Choi’s investment portfolio at Khosla Ventures includes high-profile companies like Glean (enterprise search), Ramp (fintech valued at $32 billion), and ClickHouse (data startup competing with Snowflake). His predictions carry weight given his track record at both Khosla and previously at Accel.
On the consumer AI front, Choi expresses skepticism about “vibe-coding apps”, questioning whether they represent genuine behavioral change or offer durable value beyond prototyping. He suggests 2026 will be a testing ground for whether enterprises can find sustainable use cases for these applications.
Regarding market dynamics, Choi anticipates a potential market correction in 2026, which would favor M&A activity over IPOs, though he maintains that strong companies can go public in any environment. He predicts Grayscale (crypto asset manager), Ethos, and Klook as potential IPO candidates.
Choi raises concerns about unsustainable private valuations, noting that current founder and investor behavior exceeds even the excesses of the zero interest-rate policy era. He questions whether these valuations can be justified without “commensurate explosive revenue materializing.”
The venture capitalist observes significant shifts in company building, with AI transforming team structures. Product managers face challenges as engineering organizations take on more customer-facing responsibilities, aided by AI that can synthesize vast customer feedback. Sales functions are becoming leaner, leveraging AI for targeting, outreach, and customer engagement.
Perhaps most provocatively, Choi predicts the first dramatic anti-AI protests will emerge from white-collar workers, not blue-collar workers, demanding job security as AI disruption accelerates. This contrarian prediction suggests that knowledge workers—traditionally insulated from automation—will be the first to mobilize against AI’s workplace impact.
Key Quotes
In 2026, we’ll see robotics experience its own GPT-3 moment. Not a mass consumer breakthrough like ChatGPT, but a foundational leap in capability.
Ethan Choi, partner at Khosla Ventures, predicts a transformative advancement in robotics that will demonstrate human-level intelligence in physical tasks, marking the beginning of general-purpose robotics.
We are seeing even more egregious valuations and behavior from founders and investors relative to zero interest-rate policy times, and I have a hard time seeing how we can sustain these kinds of private valuations without commensurate explosive revenue materializing.
Choi expresses concern about the AI investment bubble, suggesting current private company valuations exceed even the excesses of the low-interest-rate era and may not be sustainable without significant revenue growth.
We’ll have the first of dramatic anti-AI protests in certain countries with white-collar workers, not blue-collar workers, demanding job security in the face of AI disruption.
In his most contrarian prediction, Choi forecasts that knowledge workers will be the first to organize protests against AI, challenging conventional assumptions about which workers face the greatest automation threat.
We are seeing the role of the product manager being challenged with the engineering org taking on more responsibility of understanding end-customer needs and driving product roadmap, with the help of AI that can synthesize vast quantities of customer feedback.
Choi describes how AI is already reshaping organizational structures, with traditional product management roles being absorbed by engineering teams empowered by AI tools.
Our Take
Choi’s predictions reveal a venture capitalist grappling with AI’s contradictions: transformative potential alongside unsustainable hype. His robotics forecast is credible given recent advances in embodied AI and multimodal models, but the timeline may be optimistic. The white-collar protest prediction is particularly astute—we’re already seeing anxiety among programmers, writers, and analysts as AI capabilities expand. What’s notable is Choi’s willingness to question the sustainability of current AI valuations despite being deeply invested in the space. This suggests even AI bulls recognize a potential reckoning ahead. The transformation of company building he describes—leaner teams, AI-augmented workflows, challenged middle management—points to a fundamental restructuring of knowledge work that will accelerate in 2026. The real question is whether society can adapt quickly enough to manage the disruption Choi foresees.
Why This Matters
Choi’s predictions signal a critical inflection point for AI’s real-world impact in 2026. The anticipated robotics breakthrough represents AI moving beyond digital interfaces into physical environments, potentially revolutionizing manufacturing, logistics, healthcare, and home assistance. This “GPT-3 moment” for robotics could unlock trillion-dollar markets and fundamentally alter how humans interact with machines.
The prediction of white-collar worker protests is particularly significant, challenging assumptions about which workers face the greatest AI disruption. While blue-collar automation has dominated discussions for decades, Choi suggests that knowledge workers—programmers, analysts, lawyers, and managers—will be first to feel acute displacement pressure. This could trigger political and regulatory responses that reshape AI deployment.
The concerns about unsustainable valuations and questions about consumer AI applications suggest a potential reckoning for the AI investment bubble. If revenue doesn’t materialize to justify current valuations, 2026 could see significant corrections affecting startups, investors, and the broader tech ecosystem. For businesses and workers, these predictions underscore the urgency of AI adaptation strategies.
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Source: https://www.businessinsider.com/khosla-ventures-eric-choi-vc-investor-2025-12