The Joe Walker Podcast Larry Summers — AGI and the Next Industrial Revolution
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Oct 21, 2024 
Larry Summers, a former US Treasury Secretary and current Harvard professor, shares his expertise on the impact of artificial intelligence on economic growth. He draws compelling parallels between AI and past industrial revolutions, emphasizing its potential for both automation and enhancing research. Summers discusses the intricacies of US economic dynamics, stressing the importance of technological governance. He also contrasts the perspectives of technologists and economists, highlighting the need for collaboration in shaping future AI policies.
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Technology and History
- Technology drives major inflection points in history.
- Two-thirds of all GDP was produced during Larry Summers' lifetime.
GDP Growth
- Only 7% of all humans are currently alive, yet they have produced two-thirds of all GDP.
- Three times more GDP could be produced in the next 50 years than in all of history.
Learning New Technologies
- To understand new technologies, study historical technological revolutions, understand the technology's workings, and talk to people applying it.
- Larry Summers learned about AI by studying history, tutorials, and conversations with OpenAI staff.