Alphabet chairman Eric Schmidt falls into the camp that believes the benefits of automation from artificial intelligence will outweigh any jobs lost because of the technology.

"I've taken the position of 'job elimination denier,'" he said on Wednesday, per CNBC. "I've just decided I'm going to be contrarian, because the data supports me, and it's more fun to be in opposition anyway." He noted that economists "would say that you can see the job that's lost, but you very seldom can see the job that's created."

Why it matters: There's a huge public debate raging about the effect that rising automation will have on employment. Silicon Valley stands to gain a lot from the trend — given many companies are invested in A.I. and robotics — so it will be interesting to see how major tech execs approach the issue.