AI and economic mobility: Opportunities and challenges

The advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) offers immense potential to drive innovation, productivity, and new forms of economic participation. Yet, without thoughtful oversight, AI can pose risks of deepening inequality. Past technological revolutions, from mechanization to digitalization, have produced both prosperity and dislocation, sometimes widening gaps in income, wealth, and opportunity. A key question that arises is: How can AI be deployed effectively to enhance economic mobility and ensure the benefits of AI systems are reaped widely?

On June 10, the Brookings Center on Regulation and Markets hosted a fireside chat with Neil Thompson, director of the FutureTech project at MIT, to explore the intersection of AI and economic mobility. The discussion was moderated by Sanjay Patnaik, director of the Center on Regulation and Markets. This event is a part of the Center’s ongoing series, The Economics and Regulation of Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technologies.