New Course
An honest map of a contested question
Five modules covering what work actually is, how we got here, what could go wrong, what could go right, and how to build your own view. Not doom. Not hype. The evidence as it stands.
What You'll Learn
The five modules
Each module stands on its own. Together they give you a working framework for thinking about automation and work — one you can test, push back on, and extend.
1. What We're Actually Talking About
The question, the definitions, and the four dimensions of human work.
2. How We Got Here
Tasks not jobs, general-purpose technologies, and the long-run data.
3. What Could Go Wrong
Demand contraction, tax-base erosion, inequality, and the household income stack.
4. What Could Go Right
Sovereign wealth funds, employee ownership, transfers, and the human exception.
5. Your Mindset
Self-audit, diversification, path dependency, and thinking for yourself.
Course Includes
Concept boardsFour concepts per lesson, explained clearly
FlashcardsFive key terms per lesson to review
Practice questionsCheck understanding as you go
Further readingCurated links to papers and books per topic
Timed final exam20 questions, 30 minutes
Printable certificateUnlocked by passing the exam
Ready To Start
Begin with Lesson 1
Start with the question that won't go away. From Keynes's 1930 forecast to today's AI wave, there is a single thread — and it is worth pulling on.
Who This Course Is For
No economics background required
This course is written for a general adult audience — no economics background assumed. Terms are defined where used; claims are sourced; and every lesson points you to the primary readings if you want to go deeper. If you have followed the AI debate and want something more grounded than most of the public conversation, this is for you.
Sources and Attribution
A synthesis, not a single voice
This course deliberately draws on a wide set of voices — Keynes (1930), Fisher (1933), Autor, Levy & Murnane (2003), Bresnahan & Trajtenberg (1995), Piketty, Brynjolfsson et al. (2023), Acemoglu & Restrepo, Frey & Osborne (2013), Paul David (1985), Diamandis & Kotler (2015), Darity & Hamilton (2010), Van Parijs, Karabarbounis & Neiman (2014), the ILO, the OECD, the IMF, and the NBER. It also draws on David Shapiro's popular writing, which has done much to bring post-labour economics to a wider audience. The point of the course is to let you read all of them — and then form your own view.
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