Daron acemoglu

MIT Professors Argue for ‘Pro Worker-AI’ Plan In New Paper

Experts agree that there’s still a chance for AI to support human expertise instead of displacing its need.

Eric Urbach

Feb 27, 2026 — 2 min read

Screenshot of Daron Acemoglu, David Autor, and Simon Johnson with Natasha Sarin (moderator) speaking during the "AI + work: Building pro-worker AI" online event.

WASHINGTON, Feb 27, 2026 – Disruptions to work from AI are coming, and the United States is not on a path to prevent the worst impacts, according to a panel of MIT professors and researchers.

At an event hosted by the Brookings Institution and The Hamilton Project on Tuesday, Daron Acemoglu, David Autor, and Simon Johnson spoke about research paper “Building Pro-Worker AI,” which outlines a conceptual framework for an AI that supports and increases the need for human expertise, instead of creating tools that displace workers. In 2024, Acemoglu and Johnson won a Nobel Prize in Economic Science.

“52 percent of American workers are worried about AI…42% of those who are currently using AI think it will lead to job loss, ” Acemoglu said. “Americans are right to be worried because AI is presented as the greatest automation technology of all time, Artificial General Intelligence being the apogee of this vision.”