Data and AI in Society Lecture Series | Industries of Ideas: Preparing People & Policy for Work in an AI Economy

Generative AI burst into the public consciousness with the release of OpenAI’s ChatGPT at the end of 2022. In the two and a half years that followed, we have seen the capabilities of foundation models like ChatGPT grow at a breathtaking rate, but our understanding of AI’s implications for the economy and work has not kept pace. Public impact predictions have ranged from species extinction to utopia, while even the most sober and technical economic forecasts have varied by amounts nearly twice the size of Germany’s economy.

As a result, state and federal policymakers, business and innovation leaders, higher education institutions, and everyday students, families and workers face great uncertainty as they try to decide how to react to and prepare for the effects AI may have on business, careers, jobs, education, innovation, and the prosperity and security of the United States. Much of this uncertainty stems from the lack of trustworthy, timely, local, and actionable data about where the technology is headed, how its capabilities may shape the workplaces of the future, and what we can do to prepare.

This talk surveys some of the key issues for understanding AI effects on our jobs and the economy. It walks through initial findings the Industries of Ideas (IofI) project, a new effort that brings together universities, federal and state agencies, business and economic development leaders, and education and training providers to better understand how this new technology is shaping jobs and the skills needed to position the nation, specific regions, employers, and individuals to thrive in an AI-driven economy.

Meet Jason Owen-Smith:

Jason Owen-Smith is the Associate Vice President for Research at the University of Michigan, where he drives the expansion data usage that strategically supports the University of Michigan’s research and creative enterprise. A Professor of Sociology and Research Professor at the Institute for Social Research, his work examines the impact of large-scale networks on knowledge-intensive fields, such as science, engineering, and surgical
care.

Professor Owen-Smith is the author of Research Universities and the Public Good and co-founder of the Institute for Research on Innovation and Science (IRIS), which curates data to improve the public value of academic research investments.