Nobel Laureate: AI Cannot Replicate the Era of High-Speed Economic Growth

Odaily Planet Daily News, July 7 – Christopher Pissarides, the 2010 Nobel laureate in economics, has warned that artificial intelligence will not bring Western economies back to an era of high productivity growth—an era that may have gone for good. Pissarides stated that up to 40% of jobs in the United States and the United Kingdom will remain largely unaffected by AI, citing sectors such as nursing and hospitality. Technology companies and governments are pinning their hopes on AI to revive growth levels that have slowed significantly in recent decades. The weak performance of Western economies, particularly in Europe, has made policy trade-offs more difficult. However, Pissarides said there is currently little evidence to suggest that AI can deliver productivity gains, and he questioned claims by Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and OpenAI founder Sam Altman that the technology will have a profound impact on employment. While the technology may bring some productivity benefits, "I have doubts about whether it will replicate the computer boom of the 1980s and 1990s," Pissarides said.