Podcast: Pascual Restrepo on Artificial Intelligence, Inequality, and the Future of Work

​Professor Pascual Restrepo (pictured) is an MIT economist whose research focuses on the impact of technology on inequality, labor markets, and growth. Along with Daron Acemoglu, he has authored or co-authored some of the most impactful studies that help us make sense of the promises and risks posed by new technology.  Listen



In the aftermath of a turbulent election, policy analysts and journalists are beginning to turn their attention toward the ambitions of the incoming Biden Administration. We’ll discuss many of these ambitions in next month’s Difference Principle Newsletter, but I first want to draw attention to a key issue that President Biden may face in his term. 

And that is the issue of labor automation.

In this podcast episode, which was recorded prior to the election, we talk with Pascual Restrepo, who is a prominent economist studying the impact of new digital technologies (e.g. artificial intelligence) on inequality. As employers hasten their embrace of labor automation due to COVID social distancing measures, previously abstract discussions about potential automation are now descriptive of reality. 

Professor Restrepo has coauthored or authored some of the most influential studies that help us make sense of this phenomenon. And in this interview, he discusses how new technologies might exacerbate inequality, promote instability, and eliminate jobs. 

Check out this podcast to get a quick briefing on what may well be a defining issue for the Biden Administration. 

You can listen to this interview and subscribe to The Difference Principle on Spotify and on other platforms by clicking this link to the Anchor page 

Thanks for listening.

—Julian