The U.K. economy could shrink by hundreds of billions of dollars by 2030 because of the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning, according to a new study.
Research by The Economist Intelligence Unit last week illustrated a number of scenarios detailing the impact of advances in AI on world economies.
In one scenario, human skills were complementary to AI, government investment in training workers increased, and all nations it analyzed benefited — albeit some more than others. In another, increased investment toward sharing data and advanced computing efficiency led to all countries’ gross domestic product (GDP) rising by at least 1 percent.
But in the third — and only negative — scenario, a lack of any upskilling or data sharing resulted in AI taking the jobs of humans. In this scenario, both Britain and Australia’s economies suffered as a result, with the U.K.’s becoming $420 billion smaller and Australia’s losing $50 billion. The U.S. and Asian economies continued to grow but significantly below expectations, the report said.
