Showing 1 - 10 of 20
Measuring the economic impact of AI
Oped, Diane Coyle, Published on 24/10/2025
» Is AI transforming the economy in any real sense, or is the promise of rapid growth mere hype?
The incalculable costs of corrupt statistics
Oped, Diane Coyle, Published on 29/08/2025
» With GDP and employment figures dominating political debates, it is easy to forget that they are hardly timeless truths. In fact, how we measure progress has shifted dramatically over time. The Physiocrats -- eighteenth-century French economists who saw agriculture as the source of all wealth -- regarded farms' output as the most important economic indicator. The Soviet Union, for its part, focused exclusively on goods production and ignored services altogether.
Blacked-out danger
Oped, Postbag, Published on 13/08/2025
» Re: "Show your face", (PostBag, Aug 1) & "New road safety shock", (Editorial, June 26).
Building infrastructure for the AI age
Oped, Diane Coyle, Published on 22/07/2025
» The London Underground, the world's oldest subway system, opened in 1863. Around the same time, London's modern sewage system was designed by civil engineer Joseph Bazalgette in response to the Great Stink of 1858, which brought parliament to a standstill. Planning far ahead, Bazalgette built the system to last 150 years. Only now, with the Thames Tideway project, is it being significantly expanded.
Can AI revolutionise prosperity?
Oped, Diane Coyle, Published on 06/09/2024
» As global economic growth slows, many hope technological innovation is a potential solution. The International Monetary Fund's latest World Economic Outlook, for example, highlighted the potential of artificial intelligence to boost productivity and GDP. But the report also warns that given the uncertainties surrounding the extent of AI's impact, such forecasts should be approached with a dose of caution. While AI could usher in an era of prosperity, this outcome depends on how these emerging technologies evolve.
'Time tax' rises despite modern tech innovations
Oped, Diane Coyle, Published on 04/07/2024
» Despite the rapid proliferation of artificial-intelligence chatbots and virtual assistants, finding an answer to a question that a company's software is not programmed to address can be frustrating. Searching through countless options on price-comparison websites for the best insurance policy or airline ticket can be equally exhausting. Yet, we tend to view this "time tax" as the cost of doing business in today's digitised global economy.
A failed state?
Oped, Postbag, Published on 04/05/2024
» Re: "Thai police graft highlights bigger issues", (Opinion, April 26).
Why sharing the tech wealth is really important
Oped, Diane Coyle, Published on 08/03/2024
» One of the defining economic challenges of our time is how to distribute the value generated by groundbreaking technologies, such as generative artificial intelligence and recent innovations in biomedicine and manufacturing. To improve living standards, the benefits of transformative technologies must be widely shared. So far, however, these benefits have been monopolised by a small cadre of tech billionaires.
Spend more wisely
Oped, Postbag, Published on 25/11/2023
» Re: "China-made sub engine is now 'ok'", (BP, Nov 21).
Unlocking AI's potential for everybody
Oped, Diane Coyle, Published on 18/08/2023
» Artificial intelligence is moving fast. People are using generative AI and large language models (LLMs) to build new services and perform existing tasks, and the underlying technology itself is advancing quickly. As the Nobel laureate economist Michael Spence observes, this wave of adoption could well yield significant productivity gains, after almost two decades of lackluster growth. Every day brings news like Google's recent announcement that its AI has helped American Airlines reduce contrails by 54%, reducing each flight's climate footprint.