A new industrial
policy
Artificial
intelligence is advancing at a pace that rivals the Industrial Revolution.
Unlike past cycles, market forces alone cannot manage the concentration of
wealth or the displacement of human roles. A proactive, people-first policy is
needed to ensure superintelligence benefits society at large. The aim is shared
prosperity, risk mitigation, and democratized access to AI tools.
Modernising the
tax base
As value shifts from
human labour to automated outputs, payroll taxes erode. To sustain social
programmes, revenue must be rebalanced. Capital gains and corporate taxes
should capture AI-driven profits, while levies on automated labour replace lost
payroll contributions. Incentives must reward firms that retrain and retain
workers, ensuring AI augments rather than replaces human agency.
Public Wealth
Fund
A Public Wealth Fund
would give every citizen a direct stake in AI growth. Seeded by government and
frontier AI firms, it would invest in equity, AI-adopting companies, and
diversified assets. Returns would be distributed as citizen dividends,
preventing wealth concentration and ensuring broad participation in the upside
of superintelligence.
Adaptive safety
nets
Traditional safety
nets tied to employers are obsolete. Portable benefit accounts should follow
individuals across jobs and industries. Automated triggers would scale support
when displacement rises. Efficiency dividends—such as four-day workweek pilots and
enhanced healthcare or childcare subsidies—would convert AI productivity gains
into human security and reclaimed time.
Labour market
impacts
Observed exposure
data shows AI affects high-earning, white-collar roles most. Programmers,
customer service representatives, and data entry workers face high automation
risk, while manual labour remains resilient. Hiring trends among young workers
already show a 14% decline in exposed occupations. Policy must anticipate
displacement before it becomes widespread.
Governance and
global accountability
Resilience requires
post-deployment monitoring and real-time auditing. A Center for AI Standards
and Innovation should oversee risks in cybersecurity, biology, and autonomous
replication. Frontier firms must adopt Public Benefit Corporation structures to
prevent insider capture. International cooperation through a global network of
AI institutes would harmonise safety protocols and crisis responses.
Conclusion
Superintelligence is
not a distant prospect but an ongoing economic reorganisation. Institutions
must be built to ensure inclusive prosperity, portable security, and democratic
participation. The challenge is to harness extraordinary progress without allowing
it to deepen inequality or erode social cohesion.
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