Recent developments in technology, including the proliferation of smart machines, networked communication, and digitization, have the potential to transform the economy in ground-breaking ways. This revolution has generated a great deal of conversation about the implications for the future of work in America and the role of both scientific and business innovation.

On February 19, The Hamilton Project convened academic experts and business leaders to discuss the future of work in the machine age. Opening remarks were delivered by former U.S. Treasury Secretary Robert E. Rubin. Following opening remarks, Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee, of the Center for Digital Business at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sloan School of Management and authors of the best-selling book “The Second Machine Age: Work, Progress, and Prosperity in a Time of Brilliant Technologies” provided framing remarks. The forum also included two panel discussions focusing on labor market issues, including the changing nature of work and its implications for workers of various skill types, and organizational innovation and the importance of business dynamism in the face of such challenges.

Participants included Arati Prabhakar of DARPA, David Autor of MIT, Aneesh Chopra of Hunch Analytics, Laura D. Tyson of the University of California, Berkeley, John Haltiwanger of the University of Maryland, and Lawrence H. Summers of Harvard University.