As we stand on the cusp of a new wave of innovation in AI, how do we ensure that the gains are distributed equitably across society?

In his new book Power and Progress: Our Thousand-Year Struggle Over Technology and Prosperity, MIT economist Simon Johnson (and co-author Daron Acemoglu), take a sweeping look across one thousand years of technological progress and find that past transformations like the agricultural and industrial revolutions did not automatically lead to shared prosperity. Rather, they benefited a narrow swathe of interests.

As key decision-makers in how AI is deployed – whether used to replace or augment human capabilities – business leaders and policy makers play a critical role in determining whether we achieve shared prosperity. In a conversation with Center Director Vijay Gurbaxani, Professor Johnson will share the key insights from his book, highlighting impediments to shared prosperity in prior technology revolutions, and the changes to business and regulatory contexts that we should make to achieve equitable growth in the age of AI.