Fed to review AI productivity and jobs outlook at November hearing
The Federal Reserve is preparing to examine how technology-led productivity shifts could affect inflation and employment as policymakers hold interest rates steady. Chair Kevin Warsh says he plans to attend a November 16 field hearing in the San Francisco Bay Area to refine his views on the economic and monetary policy effects of AI-driven change.
Highlights
- Federal Reserve's productivity and jobs task force will hold a field hearing on November 16 in the San Francisco Bay Area to assess AI's economic impact.
- Officials will examine how AI-driven productivity changes could affect the Fed's ability to achieve price stability over the next several years.
- The hearing signals increased Fed focus on structural technology shifts for growth, employment, inflation, and future monetary policy decisions.
November hearing to test policy assumptions
As reported by Reuters, Warsh says the central bank's productivity and jobs task force is holding a field hearing on November 16 in the San Francisco Bay Area to gather views from a broad range of participants on technology, productivity and their implications for monetary policy.Speaking after the Fed leaves rates unchanged, Warsh says the session is set to explore what AI-driven productivity could mean for the economy in the near term, medium term and long term. He says he is keenly interested in refining his own views on whether a productivity surge arrives quickly or develops more slowly.
Implications for inflation and labor markets
Warsh says the discussion is also focused on whether new technology makes it harder or easier for the Fed to achieve price stability over the next several years. He adds that officials want to examine the consequences for jobs over the medium and long term, as well as in the near term.The hearing highlights how the Fed is weighing potential structural changes in productivity as it assesses the outlook for growth, employment and inflation. That makes the task force's work relevant not only for labor market analysis but also for the future path of monetary policy.
In our earlier article on a KPMG survey of U.S. CEOs about AI agents, we noted that many large companies are already seeing efficiency and growth benefits, even if only a small share view the technology as transformational so far. The survey also highlighted that executives expect AI to support workforce growth through hiring and retraining, alongside sustained investment in AI infrastructure—an important backdrop for the Fed’s debate over AI-driven productivity and its implications for inflation and employment.