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Over 200 economists and 16 Nobel laureates sign urgent letter warning that AI job losses will outpace the Industrial Revolution

More than 200 economists, tech leaders, and academics, including 16 Nobel Prize winners, have signed an open letter warning that rapid AI development threatens massive job disruptions. The statement, titled "We Must Act Now," was published on July 15, 2026. Signatories include MIT professors Daron Acemoglu and Simon Johnson, NYU economist Michael Spence, and former Google CEO Eric Schmidt. The letter warns that AI will become exponentially more powerful over the next 10 years and could transform the economy faster than the Industrial Revolution. Stanford economist Erik Brynjolfsson, who helped organize the statement, warned that society is unprepared for the upcoming economic changes. The authors call on governments to build safety guardrails, warning that failing to act will worsen income inequality and social instability.