The Artificial Intelligence Revolution
The opportunities for innovation and technological change represent an extraordinary opportunity for the progress of nations.
Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI), defined as computer systems capable of creating new content from patterns learned in large volumes of data, has opened the door to a significant amplification of human capabilities.
One important application has been the use of Generative Pretrained Transformers (GPT) language models in chatbots that allow users to request tasks via text. The launch of ChatGPT in November 2022, along with the emergence of other chatbots as mass-market online tools, has driven the expansion of GAI.
GAI has also spread to specialized architectures in fields as diverse as molecular biology, business automation, and artistic creation. It is a technological revolution whose full scope is only beginning to emerge.
Its adoption has been rapid and widespread. As with any technological transformation, the expected effect is increased productivity, economic growth, and improved standards of living, driven by the scientific advances it enables.
A recent study by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis estimated that, in the United States, during the three years following the launch of ChatGPT, the percentage of adults using GAI grew far more quickly than the initial adoption of PCs and the Internet in their respective first three years.
The same study calculated that, through time savings as a share of hours worked, GAI may have increased labor productivity by up to 1.3 percent since ChatGPT’s introduction. Moreover, industries with higher rates of time savings experienced faster productivity growth.
Despite the benefits already realized and those still to come, commentary emphasizing the downsides of this transformation has proliferated. The main concern centers on potential job losses and rising unemployment.
Such fears are not new: they have accompanied nearly every major technological shift since the Industrial Revolution of the 18th and 19th centuries. Undeniably, technology has displaced professions such as telephone operator, calculator, telegraph operator, and typist, among many others. Yet it has also refined certain occupations and created entirely new ones.
This happens because technology not only has a substitution effect but, above all, a complementary one with labor, typically requiring investment in physical and human capital and generating new lines of work. It is therefore inappropriate to predict higher unemployment solely on the basis of disappearing tasks. In fact, technological change has consistently been a driver of economic growth and employment overall.
Some studies have sought to estimate, across various countries, the percentage of jobs and the socioeconomic characteristics of employees with high “exposure” to GAI. This concept does not necessarily imply layoffs, as it also accounts for the potential to adopt new technologies. The discrepancies among research findings confirm the uncertainty surrounding the impact of GAI on employment.
Additionally, several analyses conclude that, to date, no clear effects of GAI on employment can be identified in the United States, even in the socioeconomic segments and industries where greater impact had been anticipated. This does not mean, of course, that future effects will not materialize. Until they do, concerns about job security are likely to persist, particularly in certain sectors.
Another common concern is the notion that GAI will limit creativity and even the use of human intelligence, making people “less capable.” This fear is exaggerated, given that AI has evolved for decades without producing such consequences. Far from rendering people less capable, earlier AI innovations, such as web search engines, recommendation systems, and virtual assistants, have made human activity more efficient and productive.
An additional concern relates to the rising electricity consumption of the data centers powering GAI services. While this trend poses a significant challenge, the vast potential for renewable energy generation and future technological advances will help mitigate the problem.
Overall, the benefits of GAI far outweigh the costs of its adoption. The opportunities for innovation and technological progress represent an extraordinary chance for nations to advance.
This is an English version of a piece originally published in El Financiero on December 3, 2025.
Manuel Sánchez holds a B.A. in economics from the Monterrey Institute of Technology (ITESM) and an A.M. and a Ph.D. in economics from The University of Chicago. He is a former Deputy Governor at the Bank of México, a Non-Resident Fellow at the SMU Texas-Mexico Center, a member of several boards of directors, and an Economic Advisor to Spruceview Capital Partners.