Artificial Intelligence

Overview

Recent advancements in artificial intelligence offer substantial benefits, but there are risks associated with this rapidly evolving technology. The IMF is investigating AI's broader impact on economies and societies by gathering global knowledge through surveillance activities, and by convening key actors to share successful policy responses, foster international consensus and harmonize regulations.

Blogs

Artificial Intelligence Can Make Markets More Efficient—and More Volatile
October 15, 2024

AI-driven trading could lead to faster and more efficient markets, but also higher trading volumes and greater volatility in times of stress

Carbon Emissions from AI and Crypto Are Surging and Tax Policy Can Help
August 15, 2024

Crypto mining and data centers now account for 2 percent of global electricity use and nearly 1 percent of global emissions, and their footprint is growing.

Mapping the World's Readiness for Artificial Intelligence Shows Prospects Diverge
June 25, 2024

New AI Preparedness Index Dashboard tracks 174 economies based on their digital infrastructure, human capital, labor policies, innovation, integration and regulation

Fiscal Policy Can Help Broaden the Gains of AI to Humanity
June 17, 2024

The AI transition will require stronger social safety nets, investment in education, and tax systems that support human workers and mitigate inequality

Beyond Efficiency: A More-human Economics
March 4, 2024

There is a growing consensus that the economics profession must be open to new ideas and frameworks if it hopes to solve the world’s biggest problems

AI Will Transform the Global Economy. Let’s Make Sure It Benefits Humanity.
January 14, 2024

AI will affect almost 40 percent of jobs around the world, replacing some and complementing others. We need a careful balance of policies to tap its potential

Podcasts

Yuval Noah Harari on Human Evolution and the AI Revolution
October 1, 2024

Stories can unify or divide but our ability to imagine them is uniquely human. Cooperation and trust, built through shared stories and narratives, are the foundation of human societies and economies. So what happens when humans no longer hold the pen? Yuval Noah Harari is a historian, philosopher, and author of several books on human evolution, including Sapiens, and Nexus: A brief history of Information Networks from the Stone Age to AI. In this podcast, Harari says artificial intelligence is a risk to humankind’s most valuable resource, trust. Transcript

AI’s Real Risk to Wages: Andrew Berg and Maryam Vaziri
December 7, 2023

The pace at which artificial intelligence is transforming jobs is astounding, but while it boasts higher productivity AI is also increasing wage inequality. When workers are replaced by machines, real wages decline, and the owners of capital prosper. So who owns AI and how should its benefits be distributed? In this podcast, the IMFs Andrew Berg and Maryam Vaziri discuss AI’s inequality problem, the subject of their article in December’s special AI edition of Finance and Development magazine. Berg is Deputy Director, and Vaziri is an economist, both in the IMF Institute for Capacity Development. Transcript

AI
Impact of AI on Developing Economies
January 25, 2021

Artificial intelligence and robots are revolutionizing production processes across the globe, but what countries stand to gain most from these new technologies? Economists Andy Berg and Chris Papageorgiou are coauthors of a new study that suggests the so-called AI revolution may widen the gap between rich and poor countries. Transcript

Read the blog

Arnaud Costinot: Taxing Robots to Level the Playing Field
July 24, 2019

Technological innovation like automation using robots to produce goods and provide services creates tremendous opportunities for businesses. But as the cost of producing robots goes down, is this technology widening the income gap? Economist Arnaud Costinot has been studying technological change and its impact on inequality, and in this podcast, he discusses how a robot tax might help better distribute the benefits of artificial intelligence, or AI technologies. Arnaud Costinot is a Professor of Economics at MIT, and coauthor of Robots, Trade, and Luddism: A Sufficient Statistic Approach to Optimal Technology Regulation. Costinot was invited to present his research at the IMF.

Japan: Land of the Rising Robots
September 27, 2018

In Japan, deaths outnumber births by 1,000 people per day on average. The population in some regions is now smaller than what it was in the 1950’s. The combination of its rapidly declining labor force—expected to fall even faster than the overall population, and the limited influx of immigrants, creates a powerful incentive for robots and artificial intelligence. In this podcast, IMF economists Todd Schneider and Gee Hee Hong say Japan has no choice but to embrace robots and automation to help the shrinking workforce become more productive. Schneider and Hong coauthored Land of the Rising Robots, an article featured in the June 2018 edition of Finance and Development Magazine.

Ray Kurzweil: Intelligent Machines Are Your Friend
October 27, 2016

In this podcast, inventor and futurist Ray Kurzweil talks about how artificial intelligence is helping overcome human limitations and creating better-paying jobs. Kurzweil participated in a panel discussion entitled Technology, Innovation, and Inclusive Growth, during the 2016 IMF World-Bank Annual Meetings.

Videos

Broadening the Gains from GenAI: The Role of Fiscal Policies
June 17, 2024

First Deputy Managing Director Gita Gopinath joined Washington Post's Heather Long for a fireside chat about fiscal policies in the age of AI.

Crisis Amplifier? How to Prevent AI from Worsening the Next Economic Downturn
May 30, 2024

AI has the power to change our lives and the global economy. We have the power to shape that change for the better.

Seminar: Debate on the Global Economy: The Macroeconomic Implications of AI
April 18, 2024

AI is set to transform the global economy and has vast potential to benefit humanity. Yet, AI’s disruptive power also carries risks.

Can we use technology and innovation to improve productivity and growth? | IMF Today
April 18, 2024

Artificial intelligence (AI) is here, with the potential to boost economic growth, but also disrupt industries.

New Economy Forum: AI Digital Gap: Making AI Accessible to All
April 17, 2024

AI is increasingly reshaping economies, societies, and growth trajectories. While its potential is immense, ensuring the equitable distribution of its benefits has become a pressing concern for policymakers, economists and technology firms both domestically, and globally.

Analyze This! Artificial Intelligence
April 1, 2024

This Analyze This! video focuses on how AI will impact the job market and the global economy.