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What's Your Problem?

What the Industrial Revolution Teaches Us About the AI Revolution

Sep 21, 2023
Simon Johnson, MIT economist and co-author of 'Power and Progress', discusses creating conditions for technological change to benefit many people. Explores impact of Industrial Revolution, compares it to AI revolution, and addresses challenges faced by tech founders. Examines link between technological progress and broadly shared prosperity, and discusses issues of inequality and automation.
35:10

Episode guests

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

  • Creating conditions for technological change to benefit many people is crucial.
  • Democratization, public funding, and focus on creating new tasks and opportunities for all are essential for the AI revolution to deliver shared benefits.

Deep dives

The Link Between Technological Change and Prosperity

The podcast explores how technological change has historically affected prosperity. It discusses the Industrial Revolution in England, where technological advancements led to productivity gains but did not result in broad-based prosperity. The episode highlights the importance of creating conditions for technological change to benefit everyone and questions whether the current AI revolution will deliver shared benefits or only benefit a few. It emphasizes the need for public funding, democratization of AI development, and the focus on creating new tasks and opportunities for all.

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