BREAKINGVIEWS-AI productivity delay is just history repeating
A Reuters Breakingviews column by Robert Cyran discusses the paradox of US worker productivity growth post-pandemic, which has outpaced previous decades, yet the AI boom appears to have minimal impact. A study from MIT's NANDA Initiative reveals most corporate AI pilots show no measurable financial results. Additionally, OpenAI's CEO, Sam Altman, suggests investors are overly optimistic about AI, while Meta Platforms has halted hiring in its AI division.
(The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are his own.)
By Robert Cyran
NEW YORK, Aug 22 (Reuters Breakingviews) - US worker output since the pandemic has grown more quickly than in dud decades like the 1980s and 2010s. Problem is, the costly AI boom seems to have little to do with it. That might not be so surprising: electricity, coal and computers all took a while to show up in the statistics.
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CONTEXT NEWS
A study by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s NANDA Initiative found that the “vast majority” of surveyed corporate artificial intelligence pilots have produced “no measurable” financial impact.
Sam Altman, CEO of ChatGPT developer OpenAI, said that investors are currently “overexcited” about artificial intelligence, The Verge reported on August 15.
Facebook owner Meta Platforms has frozen hiring in its AI division, the Wall Street Journal reported on August 20. (Editing by Jonathan Guilford; Production by Maya Nandhini)
