The Rundown Are We Reliving the Dotcom Bubble with AI? Harvard Economist Explains
20 snips
Nov 2, 2025 
Jason Furman, a Harvard economist and former White House adviser, joins the hosts to analyze the current economic landscape influenced by AI. He delves into the surge of AI-related spending, estimating it's driving about half of recent growth. Furman raises concerns about whether this AI boom resembles the dot-com bubble, pointing out potential pitfalls if valuations don't align with reality. He also discusses the Fed’s rate cuts, implications for labor markets, and why Chipotle's performance might signal deeper economic trends.
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Conflicting GDP And Jobs Signals
- GDP and jobs give conflicting signals so current economic health is highly uncertain.
- Jason Furman prefers jobs data when GDP and employment conflict because employment often reflects real conditions better.
AI Growth Is Largely Demand-Led
- Much of recent growth is demand-driven AI investment in data centers and energy, not yet productivity gains.
- Furman estimates about half of current growth may be driven by AI-related spending, partly crowding out other growth.
AI Adoption Is Broad But Monetization Is Hard
- AI adoption is widespread and not comparable to pets.com; it's likely to become daily for smartphone users.
- But large valuations (e.g., a $1T IPO) require new monetizable products beyond current subscription models.
