You're looking at the AI revolution all wrong, top economist says: 40% unemployment and a 3-day work week are the same thing.

The article focuses on economist Alex Tabarrok’s perspective on the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on work and employment, arguing that AI-driven reductions in working hours could be framed positively as increased leisure rather than unemployment. Tabarrok compares scenarios of high unemployment and shorter workweeks, emphasizing that both represent similar total work hours but differ in societal distribution of gains. Despite historical precedents of declining work hours without rising unemployment, current corporate practices tend to increase output rather than reduce hours, creating tension for workers. The article also highlights broader economic and philosophical discussions about AI’s potential to transform labor, leisure, and medicine, suggesting that the transition to fewer work hours may be inevitable but will require thoughtful policy and cultural adaptation. [Extracted from the article]