Martin Ford, an author and entrepreneur, argued that while the so-called gig economy has created temporary jobs for independent contractors, the next step is to get rid of them. The ride-hailing service Uber, for example, is investing heavily in building cars that do no need drivers, he said.
David Siegel, co-chairman of the quantitative hedge fund Two Sigma, blamed technology for income problems that have led to political upheavals around the world over the past several years.
"One of the big causes for the stagnation of middle class wages is essentially because of clever computer programs," Siegel said during a panel about artificial intelligence.
Some panelists were less dire in their assessments.
Billionaire investor Steve Cohen said it would take awhile before robots replace stockpickers like himself. Kate Mitchell, co-founder of Scale Venture Partners, said freelance sites have allowed workers to supplement their income.
"It's easy to villainize technology," she said, "but there is a lot of opportunity there at the same time."