Nobel Laureate Busts the AI Hype
Nobel Prize-winning economist Daron Acemoglu challenges the AI revolution narrative with surprising data: AI will likely automate just 5% of tasks and add only 1% to global GDP this decade. And where the internet’s potential was clear early on, AI’s is not, and the technology has yet to deliver applications that can transform production or […]
Nobel Prize-winning economist Daron Acemoglu challenges the AI revolution narrative with surprising data: AI will likely automate just 5% of tasks and add only 1% to global GDP this decade. And where the internet’s potential was clear early on, AI’s is not, and the technology has yet to deliver applications that can transform production or create valuable new services.
Acemoglu reveals which roles face automation risk while explaining why jobs requiring judgment and social intelligence remain safe. His advice for leaders:
- Resist hype-driven investments and competitive pressure.
- Focus on creating new services, not just cutting costs.
- Use AI to augment human workers, not replace them.
- Partner with skilled employees to identify valuable AI applications.
This research-backed perspective cuts through speculation while acknowledging AI’s potential when it’s deployed strategically.
Video Credits
Daron Acemoglu is an institute professor at MIT, recipient of the 2024 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, and coauthor of Power and Progress: Our Thousand-Year Struggle Over Technology and Prosperity (PublicAffairs, 2023).
M. Shawn Read is the multimedia editor at MIT Sloan Management Review.
Kaushik Viswanath is the features editor at MIT Sloan Management Review.
