IMF Working Papers

How large are the gains from AI, and how are they distributed across occupations? Using five waves of the Anthropic Economic Index (January 2025 to February 2026), we construct two novel measures from observed AI usage across countries over the world. The AI concentration index (ACI) shows that in developing economies, virtually all AI gains accrue to a small professional enclave (ACI near 1.0); high-income economies average 0.4 to 0.5, with concentration declining in many countries. The labor cost equivalent (LCE) estimates AI’s aggregate value at $2.7 trillion annually (3.4% of GDP), an indicative measure of the labor cost of time saved by AI. Income and regulatory readiness predict concentration; lacking an official English language slows broadening, a barrier for developing countries.