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Nobel Prize-winning economist says AI jobs fears will produce negative outcomes
Fox Business • • business
Key Points:
- Nobel laureate economist Robert Shiller warns that widespread fears about AI destroying jobs could become a self-fulfilling prophecy, as negative narratives influence economic decisions and behaviors.
- Shiller highlights that anxiety over job loss due to technology is a recurring historical pattern, dating back to Aristotle’s time and the 19th-century Luddites who destroyed machinery threatening their employment.
- Recent polls show significant public concern about AI’s impact on employment, with 70% believing AI will reduce jobs and only 16% expecting positive societal effects in the next 20 years.
- Shiller criticizes tech leaders who promote bleak predictions about AI’s job impact, suggesting such narratives may worsen economic conditions and advising them to consider the broader consequences to avoid triggering a recession.
- He urges Silicon Valley to temper negative messaging around AI’s power, reminding them that fear-driven economic slowdowns could ultimately harm both the economy and their own business prospects.
