Andrew Leigh will be in conversation with Brian Schmidt on Andrew’s new book with Joshua Gans, Innovation + Equality: How to Create a Future That Is More Star Trek Than Terminator.
Is economic inequality the price we pay for innovation? The amazing technological advances of the last two decades – in such areas as artificial intelligence, genetics, and materials – have benefited society collectively and rewarded innovators handsomely. We get cool smartphones, and technology moguls become billionaires. This contributes to a growing wealth gap; in the United States, the wealth controlled by the top 0.1 percent of households equals that of the bottom ninety percent. Is this the inevitable cost of an innovation-driven economy?
Joshua Gans and Andrew Leigh make the case that pursuing innovation does not mean giving up on equality – precisely the opposite. In this book, they outline ways that society can become both more entrepreneurial and more egalitarian.
Dr Andrew Leigh MP is the Shadow Assistant Minister for Treasury, Shadow Assistant Minister for Charities, and Federal Member for Fenner in the ACT. He holds a PhD in public policy from Harvard. Andrew’s previous books include Battlers and Billionaires, and Randomistas.
Nobel Laureate Professor Brian P. SchmidtAC FAA FRS is Vice-Chancellor and President of The Australian National University.
Pre-event book signings will be available from 5:30pm and again after the event.