Daron Acemoglu
Daron Acemoglu
Contributor, The Yuan

Daron Acemoglu, a professor of Economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is co-author (with James A. Robinson) of Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity and Poverty and The Narrow Corridor: States, Societies, and the Fate of Liberty.


The Hollywood writers’ AI struggle is in truth everyone’s fight
Emerging markets
Hollywood writers are currently staging a strike in protest at the disruptive way AI is being used, mostly because it threatens to upend their livelihoods. However, a closer look reveals that this issue has implications far beyond the movie and entertainment industry.
The platform economy needs fixing, but to do so requires certain steps
Emerging markets
Social media comes under fire for its business model that generates profits by promoting extreme content. Steps like introducing taxes or other regulations to change these incentives, or training algorithms to stop promoting such harmful content will help to redress this problem.
Simon Johnson, Daron Acemoglu  |  May 25, 2023
What's wrong with ChatGPT?
New era
ChatGPT wins high praise, but few talk of its downsides and those who may lose out as a result of it. Part of this is fear of jobs automated out of existence, though a bigger issue is that AI chatbots can be eloquent but utterly useless in solving problems that need customer aid.
Simon Johnson, Daron Acemoglu  |  Mar 17, 2023
The end of real social networks
Generic
Social networks and social media have evolved from platforms to connect with friends and acquaintances into those more geared to advertising and the consumption of information. This becomes problematic as people get sorted into ‘bubbles’ by algorithms that feed them more content they want to see, thus reinforcing existing biases, a problem worsened by the speed at which falsehoods and disinformation spread. Unlike previous new forms of media, social media is fundamentally changing how societies work and humans interact. MIT Economics Prof Daron Acemoglu explains.
Daron Acemoglu  |  Jan 05, 2023
Daron Acemoglu talks cracks in democracy's economic base with The Yuan
Emerging markets
The world is facing multiple challenges at once, from heightened inflation to fragile economic growth, the COVID-19 pandemic, war in Ukraine, and threats to democracy. Economics professor Daron Acemoglu takes a look at each of these challenges, and what might be done to mitigate them.
Daron Acemoglu  |  Sep 01, 2022
Environmental tariffs could be a game changer
Game-changers
As climate change devastates the environment, all mitigating means must be considered. Some countries have turned to carbon taxes, but not the world’s biggest emitters the US, China, and India, where political barriers prevent this. Environmental tariffs, however, could circumvent such obstacles and even more effectively achieve their aim via incentives.
Daron Acemoglu  |  Aug 24, 2022
The Right Way to Worry
Cognition
The sway of the dinosaurs ended 66 million years ago when an asteroid crashed into Chicxulub in Mexico. If a similar asteroid were to crash into Earth today, it would cause another mass-extinction event. This should concern us now and in the coming century.
Daron Acemoglu  |  Jul 22, 2021