I was in conversation with Tyler Cowen just earlier today (thanks to everyone who joined us live!).

We discussed:

• Headline growth will be modest, not miraculous. Tyler pushes back on predictions of a 10–25% relative boost to GDP growth, arguing that unavoidable frictions – energy supply, regulation, inertia – cap the AI dividend.

• Markets are pricing in *interesting but incremental*. Currency, equity and bond markets look normal; if AI were about to explode growth, we’d see it.

• Generations use LLMs very differently. Boomers treat ChatGPT as “Google-plus”; Gen-Z treats it as a permanent confidant, a shift Tyler thinks could even reshape spirituality.

• Career strategy for twenty-somethings. Learn AI deeply, stay adaptable and anchor work in genuine passions; in a field moving this fast, nobody can get far ahead of you, but the old “good-grades” playbook is obsolete .

• School is out of sync. Scan-grade homework and one-size exams no longer make sense; faculty need to become mentors, yet education systems look “frozen,” risking a generation that feels unprepared .

• Geopolitics will shift east and south. The EU risks falling behind under heavy regulation, while the Gulf states are racing to be a third AI pole.

• You can’t really opt-out. Choosing life without AI will soon feel like living without a smartphone – technically possible, but socially and economically costly.

• Liberal institutions matter more than ever. Tyler considers free speech, competitive politics and transparent governance as the critical shields against state misuse of AI.

Further reading and resources

• Marginal Revolution – Tyler Cowen and Alex Tabarrok’s blog for daily economics & culture riffs.

• “AI will change what it means to be human. Are we ready?” Tyler Cowen & Avital Balwit, The Free Press

	Get more from Azeem Azhar in the Substack app
	Available for iOS and Android
Get the app