Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Economic growth is shifting rapidly as new technology emerges. Electricity, semiconductors, and the internet have been transformative, dramatically increasing living standards worldwide. Artificial intelligence, in some sense, is simply the latest of these general-purpose technologies. However, the case can be made that this time is different. Automating intelligence itself arguably has broader effects than electricity or semiconductors.
What if machines — AI for cognitive tasks and AI plus advanced robots for physical tasks — can perform every task a human can, but more cheaply? What does economics have to say about the future of AI, and what might our economic future look like? Professor Charles “Chad” Jones explores the transformative impact of artificial intelligence on our economic future.
Recorded during GSB Spring Reunions, May 1, 2026.
Economic growth is shifting rapidly as new technology emerges. Electricity, semiconductors, and the internet have been transformative, dramatically increasing living standards worldwide. Artificial intelligence, in some sense, is simply the latest of these general-purpose technologies. However, the case can be made that this time is different. Automating intelligence itself arguably has broader effects than electricity or semiconductors.
What if machines — AI for cognitive tasks and AI plus advanced robots for physical tasks — can perform every task a human can, but more cheaply? What does economics have to say about the future of AI, and what might our economic future look like? Professor Charles “Chad” Jones explores the transformative impact of artificial intelligence on our economic future.
Recorded during GSB Spring Reunions, May 1, 2026.
