The Inequality Economist

Bob Simison profiles Harvard’s Lawrence F. Katz, whose research changed economists’ understanding of economic disparity Like the rest of us, Harvard labor economist Lawrence F. Katz has been thinking about how artificial intelligence (AI) will change the future—especially what it will mean for inequality. Since the 1980s, he has made groundbreaking contributions to economists’ understanding of the issue and what can be done about it. Under one AI scenario, Katz says, the technology could help people who are already in advanced, high-paying professions, “thereby potentially exacerbating labor market inequality.” Under another, it might help level the playing field for workers on the lower end of the scale.