Robots Are Us: Some Economics of Human Replacement

Seth Benzell (), Laurence Kotlikoff, Guillermo LaGarda and Jeffrey D. Sachs

No 20941, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: Will smart machines do to humans what the internal combustion engine did to horses – make them obsolete? If so, can putting people out of work or, at least, good work leave them unable to buy what smart machines produce? Our model’s answer is yes. Over time and under the right conditions, supply reduces demand, leaving everyone worse off in the long-run. Carefully crafted redistribution policies can prevent such immiserating growth. But blunt policies, such as limiting intellectual property rights or restricting labor supply, can make matters worse.

JEL-codes: E22 E23 E24 J24 J31 O30 O40 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015-02
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-lab, nep-lma and nep-mac
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (80)

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Related works:
Working Paper: Robots Are Us: Some Economics of Human Replacement (2019)
Working Paper: Robots Are Us: Some Economics of Human Replacement (2017)
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