AI and the Ethics of Economics: A Dialogue with Professor Jeffrey D. Sachs at NTU

Renowned economist Professor Jeffrey D. Sachs drew a near-full house at SSS, NTU with a powerful dialogue organised by the Economic Growth Centre (EGC) that featured prominent discussions on how Artificial Intelligence (AI) is reshaping the world - much like past breakthroughs such as the steam engine, electricity, and the internet. Professor Euston Quah, Director of EGC, introduced Professor Jeffrey Sachs with the dialogue being chaired by Professor Eko Riyanto, Chair of SSS.

 

Drawing on lessons from history, Professor Sachs discussed how major technological shifts have transformed societies, altered political and economic power, and redefined how nations grow and interact. He highlighted that the rise of AI, particularly as a substitute to labour rather than a complement, could lead to widening market inequalities and an unprecedented concentration of power across economic, financial, political, military, and social spheres. Collective action, accountability, and cooperative outcomes are key to addressing the challenges.

 

Singapore was cited as an exemplary case study. Professor Sachs also discussed the tensions between market fundamentalism and mixed-economy governance, noting the gap between economic rationality and political feasibility.

 

One of his memorable takeaways was the call to rethink economics not only as a science of prediction, but also as a science of prevention, and to see economics as fundamentally a field of ethics: “Ethics is the science of a good life, and economics should be the science of a good material life.”