685. How to Survive the A.I. Shock

This episode appears to contain dynamically inserted ads. Transcript timestamps may be approximate.
Gina Raimondo, a former commerce secretary and governor, thinks A.I. will create plenty of jobs in the long run. She also thinks a poorly managed transition could tear the country apart. So she came up with a plan.
- SOURCES:
- Gina Raimondo, co-chair and C.E.O. of RAISE US.
- RESOURCES:
- "What Makes New Work Different from More Work?," by David Autor, Caroline Chin, Anna Salomons, and Bryan Seegmiller (NBER, 2026).
- "$500 million AI jobs push launches with bipartisan backing," by Christine Mui (POLITICO, 2026).
- "Gina Raimondo and Eric Holcomb Launch RAISE US, Uniting the Nation’s Leading Employers and Bipartisan Governors Behind American Workers," (RAISE US, 2026).
- "Young Graduates Face the Grimmest Job Market in Years," (New York Times, 2026).
- "Why AI Giants Are Investing $500 Million To Retrain American Workforce," by Jon Markman (Forbes, 2026).
- "Wicker Praises Research, STEM Education Provisions in New CHIPS Act," (U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, 2022).
- EXTRAS:
- "Can A.I. Save Your Life?," by Freakonomics Radio (2026).
- "Will the Democrats 'Make America Great Again'?," by Freakonomics Radio (2023).
- "How Do You Reopen a Country?," by Freakonomics Radio (2020).
- "How to Be a Modern Democrat — and Win," by Freakonomics Radio (2018).
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Preeconomic Radio is sponsored by Everpure. Is the value of AI not living up to the promise? The problem is probably your data, not your AI models. When it's scattered across different systems, getting your data AI ready is a challenge. You keep your AI waiting and everything slows down. Everpure unifies your data so you can see it, understand it and control it all from one simple place and get it AI-ready fast. Unlock the true value of your AI at EverpureData.com. Preeconomic Radio is sponsored by Progressive. Whoever says saving money is hard doesn't know that new customers who bundle and save with Progressive save hundreds because switching your home and auto insurance is better than cutting down on the things you love like those ice lattes that help you get ready to face the day. So switch your home and auto to Progressive and see if you could save and keep sipping away. Get your quote today at Progressive.com, Progressive Casualty Insurance Company, affiliates and other insurers, not available in all states. Preeconomic Radio is sponsored by LinkedIn Ads. Ever invested in something that didn't live up to the hype? Marketers know that feeling. They optimize for the numbers that look great, like impressions, but then they don't see revenue. LinkedIn has a word for that, bullspend. Instead, you can get the highest row as of major ad networks with LinkedIn. Cut the bullspend advertised on LinkedIn. Spend $250 and get a $250 credit. Go to linkedin.com/freakonomics, terms apply. Preeconomic Radio is sponsored by Mint Mobile. With Mint Mobile's summer sale, all of Mint's plans are $15 per month, even unlimited. Free yourself from big wireless and switch to Mint for high-speed data and coverage on the T-Mobile 5G network. To get your new wireless plan for just $15 a month, go to mintmobile.com/freak. That's mintmobile.com/freak. Upfront payment, $45 for three months, $90 for six months, or $180 for 12 months. Plan required, $15 per month equivalent. Taxes and fees extra initial plan term only. Better than 50GB may slow when network is busy, includes up to 20GB hotspot. Capable device required, availability, speed and coverage varies. See Mint Mobile.com. Alright, let's start with a statistic and then a few questions. Here is the statistic. Nearly 60% of the jobs that people do today did not exist in 1940. Now for the questions. Five years from now, do you think you'll have the same job you have today? Or do you think that maybe your job will be replaced by AI? And if so, what's your plan? These are increasingly common and urgent questions, so I wanted to hear from someone who is looking for answers. What I'm fundamentally trying to figure out, working with companies and governors, is how do we implement AI without triggering giant job losses? Gina Ramondo was Commerce Secretary in the Biden administration.
Transcription truncated.
Gina Raimondo, a former commerce secretary and governor, thinks A.I. will create plenty of jobs in the long run. She also thinks a poorly managed transition could tear the country apart. So she came up with a plan.