The Autonomous Economy

One of the founders of complexity economics, W. Brian Arthur, joins Azeem Azhar to discuss how artificial intelligence is ushering us into the age of the autonomous economy with radical implications for our society.

In this podcast, Brian and Azeem also discuss:

• Why the decision-making ability of AI will have a different class of impact on the economy than previous ‘landmark’ technologies like the printing press.


• Whether it is possible to have publicly available decision-making enabled by artificial intelligence outside the proprietary enclaves of Silicon Valley monopolies.


• Increasing Returns Theory and how to generate good governance in a digital economy with dominant market actors.

Further reading:

• “A Short History Of The Most Important Economic Theory In Tech” (Fast Company, December 2016)


• “Where is technology taking the economy?” (McKinsey Quarterly, October 2017)


• “The second economy” (McKinsey Quarterly, October 2011)


• “Increasing Returns and the New World of Business” (HBR, July-August 1996)

W. Brian Arthur

Azeem Azhar @azeem

www.exponentialview.co