Tyler Cowen & Alex Tabarrok on AI, Jobs, and Economic Growth

Wyatt Thomson of OpenAI speaks with economists Tyler Cowen and Alex Tabarrok about AI, labor markets, and the future of economic growth. The conversation explores one of the most common fears surrounding AI: that increasingly capable systems will eliminate jobs. Cowen and Tabarrok argue instead that economic growth remains the key variable. Throughout history, productivity-enhancing technologies have transformed work, created new industries, and expanded living standards, even as they disrupted existing jobs and institutions. They discuss automation, comparative advantage, inequality, education, healthcare, energy, and the kinds of work that may become more valuable in an AI-driven economy. Along the way, they examine longer-term questions about abundance, ownership, AI agents, and how societies can adapt to rapid technological change.