Daron Acemoglu (MIT)

web

economics.mit.edu·economics.mit.edu/people/faculty/daron-acemoglu

Acemoglu is a Nobel laureate economist frequently cited in AI governance and safety discussions for his critical analysis of how AI may concentrate power and exacerbate inequality rather than broadly benefit society.

Metadata

Importance: 52/100homepage

Summary

Faculty profile of Daron Acemoglu, MIT Institute Professor whose research spans political economy, labor economics, and technology's societal impacts. His work on institutions, inequality, and technological change—including the book 'Power and Progress'—is highly relevant to AI governance debates about automation, labor displacement, and who controls transformative technologies.

Key Points

•Acemoglu researches how technology interacts with power, inequality, and economic development, directly informing AI governance discussions
•Co-authored 'Power and Progress: Our Thousand-Year Struggle Over Technology and Prosperity', a key text on technology's societal impact
•Works on directed technical change and wage inequality, relevant to AI-driven labor market disruption
•Co-Director of the Stone Center on Inequality and Shaping the Future of Work, focused on technology's effects on workers
•Prominent public intellectual offering skeptical perspectives on AI's economic benefits and risks of concentrated technological power

Cited by 1 page

Page	Type	Quality
AI-Driven Concentration of Power	Risk	65.0

Cached Content Preview

HTTP 200Fetched Mar 20, 20269 KB

[Skip to content](https://economics.mit.edu/people/faculty/daron-acemoglu#main-content)

![" "](https://economics.mit.edu/sites/default/files/styles/facutly_profile_feature_image/public/2022-12/daron-acemoglu30.jpg?h=620fd1cb&itok=2p17a0hs)

# Daron  Acemoglu

Institute Professor



Research Fields

Macroeconomics, Political Economy, Labor Economics, Development Economics, Economic Theory


[Publications](https://economics.mit.edu/people/faculty/daron-acemoglu/publications) [Working Papers](https://economics.mit.edu/people/faculty/daron-acemoglu/working-papers) [Selected Presentations](https://economics.mit.edu/people/faculty/daron-acemoglu/selected-presentations) [Courses](https://economics.mit.edu/people/faculty/daron-acemoglu/courses) [Awards and Honors](https://economics.mit.edu/people/faculty/daron-acemoglu/awards-and-honors) [Data Archive](https://economics.mit.edu/people/faculty/daron-acemoglu/data-archive) [Other Writings & Interviews](https://economics.mit.edu/people/faculty/daron-acemoglu/other-writings-interviews)

## Contact Information

[View & Download CV](https://economics.mit.edu/sites/default/files/2025-07/CV%20July%202025_0.pdf)

Office Phone 617-253-1927

Email Address[daron@mit.edu](mailto:  daron@mit.edu)

Office[E52-446](https://whereis.mit.edu/?q=E52-446)

Social[Twitter](https://twitter.com/DAcemogluMIT)

Assistant Name[Lauren Fahey](mailto:  lola@mit.edu)

Assistant Phone 617-253-4669

[Power and Progress: Our Thousand-Year Struggle Over Technology and Prosperity](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1541702530?tag=hacboogrosit-20) [The Narrow Corridor: States, Societies and the Fate of Liberty](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/555400/the-narrow-corridor-by-daron-acemoglu-and-james-a-robinson/)

[View & Download CV](https://economics.mit.edu/sites/default/files/2025-07/CV%20July%202025_0.pdf)

## Featured Publications

[![The Narrow Corridor cover](https://economics.mit.edu/sites/default/files/styles/publication_teaser_image/public/2022-09/narrow%20corridor.jpg?itok=OS5U1ZNT)\\
\\
**The Narrow Corridor: States, Societies, and the Fate of Liberty**\\
\\
Daron Acemoglu, James A. Robinson\\
\\
September 2019](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/555400/the-narrow-corridor-by-daron-acemoglu-and-james-a-robinson/) [![Why Nations Fail cover](https://economics.mit.edu/sites/default/files/styles/publication_teaser_image/public/2022-09/why%20nations%20fail%20image.jpg?itok=1nj3UxdC)\\
\\
**Why Nations Fail: Origins of Power, Poverty and Prosperity**\\
\\
Daron Acemoglu, James A. Robinson\\
\\
March 2012](http://www.amazon.com/Why-Nations-Fail-Origins-Prosperity/dp/0307719219/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327435820&amp;sr=8-1)

### [Why Do New Technologies Complement Skills? Directed Technical Change and Wage Inequality](https://economics.mit.edu/sites/default/files/publications/why-do-new-technologies-complement-skills.pdf)

The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 113, pp. 1055-1089

### [The Structure of Wages and Investment i

... (truncated, 9 KB total)

Resource ID: 4609b96877b48d33 | Stable ID: Yzc2NDA3Zm