In an essay for Noema Magazine, David Autor shares his view of how AI could create opportunities for the middle class. Middle-skilled workers could be empowered to take on tasks currently reserved for highly educated elites, such as medical care, legal writing, or software development. This, however, is not a forecast, but a view of what is possible: AI could be leveraged to restore the middle-class heart of the US labor market, but only if we invest in supporting, not replacing workers.

This essay was also posted as an NBER working paper.