Carl Benedikt Frey on AI will create a permanent underclass

Carl Benedikt Frey

Associate Professor of AI & Work at the Oxford Internet Institute; Director of the Future of Work Program at the Oxford Martin School; author of The Technology Trap and How Progress Ends

Most economists will acknowledge that technological progress can cause some adjustment problems in the short run. What is rarely noted is that the short run can be a lifetime.

AI Verified (May 2, 2026)

Source:

Carl Benedikt Frey, quoted by Jasmine Sun in “Silicon Valley is bracing for a permanent underclass,” The New York Times, republished by The Salt Lake Tribune, May 2, 2026.

2mo ago

Policy proposals and claims

AI will create a permanent underclass

votes For

Statement relation verification history AI Verified Report this

AI Verified A technological adjustment period lasting a lifetime supports concern about a lasting displaced class. · Hector Perez Arenas gpt-5.6 · 2mo ago

Vote inference verification history AI Verified Report this

AI Verified Recorded for matches Frey’s warning that technological disruption’s short run can last a lifetime. · Hector Perez Arenas gpt-5.6 · 2mo ago

Quote authenticity verification history

Report this

AI Verified Salt Lake Tribune/NYT article reports this Carl Benedikt Frey quotation. · Hector Perez Arenas gpt-5.6 · 2mo ago

replying to Carl Benedikt Frey

Other opinions from Carl Benedikt Frey

See all

Carl Benedikt Frey votes Against

AGI will create abundance

La inteligencia artificial general (AGI), generalmente entendida como un modelo capaz de realizar cualquier tarea cognitiva, puede acelerar drásticamente la investigación médica en etapas tempranas, pero si no puede gestionar ensayos clínicos, produc...

more AI Verified source (Mar 19, 2026)

added 1mo ago

Carl Benedikt Frey votes For

Require human-in-the-loop oversight for agentic AI systems acting in high-stakes domains

For the last-invention story to hold, people would have to become unnecessary even as partners or supervisors to AIs. [...] We would need a world where practical know-how is fully transferable through digital channels and where responsibility can be ...

more Unverifiable source (2026)

added 6mo ago