The people who have the money and skills to move between the U.S. and Europe are probably disproportionately highly paid professional workers (who can earn more in the U.S.), while working-class people who would like to take advantage of Europe's urban safety and generous welfare states find it harder to move.
A core part of JFK's message was that innovation without inclusion is not progress; it is a slow-motion eviction of the American worker from their own economy.
In fact, this shift represents more evolution than revolution. Years ago, Altman did seem to generally agree with the folk consensus that AI's purpose is to make most or all humans obsolete; in 2014 he warned that we could be faced with "a new idle class", and explored the idea of Universal Basic Income as a remedy.
So far, AI is replacing tasks, not jobs. Alex Imas and Soumitra Shukla have written that as long as there are a few things that only humans can do, this pattern can be expected to hold.
We shouldn't seek to quell AI anxiety, we should embrace and analyze it. The truth is, the U.S. labor market is in serious trouble, and it has little to do with AI so far.
The deeper problem appears to be that the tech is not a meaningful job creator or increasing productivity outside of a few roles even in technology companies.
2mo ago
Underscored — save the words that stop you in your tracks.
