How AI agents could destroy the economy
TechCrunch • • general
Key Points:
- Citrini Research released a scenario projecting that agentic AI could cause significant economic damage within two years, including doubled unemployment and a stock market value drop of over one-third.
- The scenario describes a negative feedback loop where improved AI capabilities reduce the need for workers, leading to layoffs, decreased consumer spending, and increased corporate investment in AI, perpetuating the cycle.
- Unlike traditional AI risk concerns focused on misalignment, this scenario highlights gradual economic decline driven by AI replacing external contractors and disrupting business models reliant on inter-company transactions.
- The report has sparked debate online, with some skepticism about the readiness of companies to delegate purchasing decisions to AI, though the scenario assumes many such decisions are already outsourced to third parties.
- Citrini
