Technological change, led by digital technologies, is a defining feature of our time. The latest advances in artificial intelligence (AI) will drive the ongoing digital transformation of economies much further. These new technologies are reshaping markets, production, trade, and the nature of work. They hold great potential to boost productivity, economic growth, and human welfare. But they also pose new challenges and risks. There is uneven participation in the new opportunities created by digital transformation. Many are being left behind, across industries, across the workforce, and across economies. This has not only hindered the realization of the full economic potential of the new technologies but also contributed to higher inequality. Growing economic disparities and related anxieties have been stoking social discontent and are a major driver of the increased political polarization and populist nationalism that are so evident today. Rising inequality has emerged as an important topic of political debate and a major public policy concern.
On October 22, 2024, the Global Economy and Development program at Brookings, jointly with the Center for International Development at the Korea Development Institute, held a seminar titled “Digital Transformation and Artificial Intelligence: Implications for Inequality and Global Economic Convergence.” The seminar addressed the challenges of harnessing technology to build more inclusive prosperity. The program consisted of three main parts: (i) analysis of recent trends in, and outlook for, inequality within and between economies and the role of technological change and other factors; (ii) a drill-down on how technology is altering growth and distribution dynamics by reshaping labor markets (affecting workers) and product markets (affecting firms) and creating new challenges for global economic convergence; and (iii) a review of some regional/country case studies on the new dynamics and challenges created by technological change. The discussion addressed the implications of the research findings for public policy.
All presentations made at the seminar are available for download on this page.
In Partnership With
Agenda
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October 22
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Opening session
Brahima Sangafowa Coulibaly Vice President and Director - Global Economy and Development, Senior Fellow - Global Economy and Development @BSangafowaCoulDongchul Cho President - Korea Development InstituteKeynote: History and Geopolitics of Inequality
Branko Milanovic Professor, Graduate Center - City University of New York -
Session 1: New technologies and global inequality: Trends and outlook
Global inequality: An overview
Lucas Chancel Associate Professor - Sciences Po, Co-director, World Inequality Lab - Paris School of Economics, Visiting Associate Professor - Harvard Kennedy School @lucas_chancelReclaiming Progress in the Digital Age: Unlocking the Potential of New Technologies for Poverty and Inequality Reduction
Luis Felipe López-Calva Global Director, Poverty and Equity Global Practice - World BankDiscussants
Josh Bivens Chief Economist - Economic Policy InstituteMatias Busso Principal Economist, Research Department - Inter-American Development BankModerator
Brahima Sangafowa Coulibaly Vice President and Director - Global Economy and Development, Senior Fellow - Global Economy and Development @BSangafowaCoul -
Session 2: Impacts on workers and firms and implications for global economic convergence
AI, Work, Macroeconomic Impacts, and Distribution
Giovanni Melina Deputy Chief, Structural and Climate Policies Division - Research Department, IMFDigital Technologies and Global Economic Convergence
Mary Hallward-Driemeier Professor of the Practice of International Economics, Walsh School of Foreign Service - Georgetown University @MHallwardDriemeDiscussants
Federica Saliola Advisor and Lead Economist, Markets, Competition, and Technology - World BankHarry J. Holzer Nonresident Senior Fellow - Economic Studies, Center for Economic Security and Opportunity -
Session 3: Findings from regional/country case studies
Downloads- New technologies and productivity and inequality dynamics in Latin America
- The labor market impacts of AI technology: A case study of Korea
- Understanding digital divide and its policy implications
- Discussant Ana Corbacho presentation
- Discussant Jongsoo Hong presentation
- Discussant Jongkyu Lee presentation
- See More
The labor market impacts of AI technology: A case study of Korea
Minjung Kim Chief, Division of Development Research - Center for International Development, KDIUnderstanding digital divide and its policy implications
Hyeyoung Woo Head, Evaluation Team - Center for International Development, KDIDiscussants
Ana Corbacho Deputy Director, Western Hemisphere Department - IMFJongsoo Hong Associate Fellow, Department of Macroeconomic and Financial Policies - KDIJongkyu Lee Senior Fellow and Director, Office of Global and North Korean Economic Studies - KDI -
Closing remarks
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