NOBEL LAUREATE: AI CANNOT REPEAT THE ERA OF HIGH ECONOMIC GROWTH

On 7 July, the 2010 Nobel Prize winner in economics, Pisarides, warned that artificial intelligence would not allow Western economies to revert to an era of high productivity growth — an era that could no longer return. Pisarides stated that up to 40 per cent of United States and British jobs would be largely unaffected by AI, citing areas such as nursing and the hotel industry. Science and technology companies and governments will rely on AI to revive growth levels that have slowed significantly in recent decades. The weak performance of Western economies, particularly in Europe, makes the trade-off of policies more difficult. However, Pisarides stated that there was little evidence that AI could lead to productivity gains and questioned the view that the technology would have a far-reaching impact on employment, as claimed by the CEO Wong Jin-hoon and OpenAI founders, among others. Although the technology may bring some productivity gains, “I doubt that the computer boom of the 1980s and 1990s will be repeated,” Pisarides said。