The Download: AI and the economy, and slop for the masses

There's a lot at stake when it comes to understanding how AI is changing the economy right now. Should we be pessimistic? Optimistic? Or is the situation too nuanced for that?

Hopefully, we can point you towards some answers. Mat Honan, our editor in chief, will hold a special subscriber-only Roundtables conversation with our editor at large David Rotman, and Richard Waters, Financial Times columnist, exploring what's happening across different markets. Register here to join us at 1pm ET on Tuesday December 9.

The event is part of the Financial Times and MIT Technology Review “The State of AI” partnership, exploring the global impact of artificial intelligence. Over the past month, we’ve been running discussions between our journalists—sign up here to receive future editions every Monday.

If you’re interested in how AI is affecting the economy, take a look at:

+ People are worried that AI will take everyone’s jobs. We’ve been here before.

+ What will AI mean for economic inequality? If we’re not careful, we could see widening gaps within countries and between them. Read the full story.

+ Artificial intelligence could put us on the path to a booming economic future, but getting there will take some serious course corrections. Here’s how to fine-tune AI for prosperity.

The AI Hype Index: The people can’t get enough of AI slop

Separating AI reality from hyped-up fiction isn’t always easy. That’s why we’ve created the AI Hype Index—a simple, at-a-glance summary of everything you need to know about the state of the industry. Take a look at this month’s edition of the index here, featuring everything from replacing animal testing with AI to our story on why AGI should be viewed as a conspiracy theory.