Artificial intelligence is not merely a technical advancement, but a true general-purpose technology, comparable to electricity or the steam engine in its ability to impact every sector of society. During the conference held this morning at the Accademia dei Lincei, the economist Ignazio Visco, a member of the Accademia and former governor of the Bank of Italy, explained how this intelligence revolution is transforming the global economy at an unprecedented pace, potentially ten times faster than the changes brought about by the Internet in recent decades. However, alongside extraordinary benefits in terms of well-being and knowledge, significant risks are emerging for the labor market and financial stability, requiring timely political and regulatory action.
The analysis highlights how the current phase, dominated by generative artificial intelligence and large language models, is changing the very nature of work. Unlike previous waves of automation, this technology is capable of replacing highly cognitive tasks, putting pressure not only on routine jobs but also on the middle class and skilled workers. The real risk is growing income polarization and an unequal distribution of wealth, with the benefits tending to concentrate in the hands of those who own the data and the technological infrastructure. Without adequate responses, technological progress could result in stagnant real wages for the majority of the population, despite the overall increase in productivity.
In terms of economic stability, the integration of artificial intelligence into financial systems, while improving the efficiency of trading and credit, introduces new systemic vulnerabilities. The use of similar models can generate herd behavior and sudden crises, while the black-box nature of many algorithms reduces the transparency of public and private decisions. It is therefore essential that regulatory authorities adopt proactive regulations, always ensuring human oversight capable of managing model errors and aligning automated decisions with legal and ethical principles.
To address these challenges, economic policy must focus decisively on investment in human capital and professional retraining. This is not merely a matter of promoting technical and scientific skills, but of encouraging lifelong learning that fosters the ability to learn how to learn and a humanistic sensibility—both of which are essential for tasks that require empathy and critical judgment. At the same time, there is a growing need for greater international cooperation to prevent the competition for technological supremacy among major powers, such as the United States and China, from leading to market fragmentation and new global inequalities.
Europe currently finds itself dependent on foreign technological infrastructure, with lower levels of investment in research and development than its main competitors. To catch up, it is essential to foster the emergence of innovative startups and consider establishing joint research centers at the European level. Ultimately, the challenge of AI forces policymakers to choose what kind of world they want to shape for tomorrow: an inclusive and shared evolution, or an extractive economy that benefits only a small minority.