AI poses a 'catastrophic risk' but could also make us wealthier, Labor's Andrew Leigh says
Labor MP Andrew Leigh has written a new book on the history of economics. What it says about competition, AI and policy is especially revealing.
As famously one of only two Labor MPs who does not belong to an internal faction, Andrew Leigh mightn't have the most political clout in caucus. But even his critics acknowledge he is one of the sharpest and deepest thinkers on economics in Parliament.
The assistant minister for competition, charities, treasury, and employment has written a new book on the history of economics. The book touches on the past, but it’s what it suggests about the future, and in particular artificial intelligence, that is particularly revealing.
Leigh both says that artificial intelligence could present a “catastrophic risk to humanity” (at least, in the long run) and acknowledges it has the potential to boost wages and productivity. He also refers to the significant role for the government in both developing and regulating new tech.
“The job pessimists argue that artificial-intelligence driven robots are steadily getting smarter and will soon be able to do every task imaginable — so we had better prepare for a workless world,” Leigh says in the book.
“As a congenital optimist, my own inclination is towards policies that encourage work. For many of us, a job isn’t just a source of income, it’s also a source of meaning and identity,” he says. “It’s too early to give up on the world of work.”
