Gordon argued in 'The rise and fall of American growth', that the upcoming range of technologies does not possess the potential to drive rapid productivity improvements of the scale seen in the period 1940 to 1950 with an impact through to 1970.which means its hard to find the money. I am, however, not just a sceptic about the pace of change, I also find myself more in agreement with the likes of Robert Gordon rather than Bryjolfsson and McAfee, and remain unconvinced about many of the predictions of the scale of the upcoming impact of technology. Nevertheless, while I am sure we will continue to see technological change, my experience leads me to believe that the rate of adoption and impact will continue to lag the forecasts that regularly capture the headlines. I am conscious therefore that the fact I have worked extensively in the technology and telecommunications sectors may make me too sceptical of claims about the pace at which technology will change our economy and society. Technology, be ready to be disappointed.Įconomists are always taught to be careful not to extrapolate from their own experiences to develop conclusions for the economy as a whole.
