The Stanford Digital Economy Lab, part of the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence, announced the launch of the AI Economic Indicators, a publicly accessible platform designed to track how artificial intelligence is influencing labor markets, productivity, technology adoption, and economic value creation.
The platform provides regularly updated data, interactive dashboards, and research methodologies aimed at helping policymakers, researchers, businesses, and workers better understand the economic effects of AI.
According to the organization, conventional economic statistics are not designed to capture the rapid changes that artificial intelligence can bring to work and productivity at the task level. The AI Economic Indicators initiative is intended to bridge that gap by providing more timely and specialized measurements.
The initial release includes three dashboards.
The Canaries Dashboard, developed in collaboration with ADP Research and the Stanford Digital Economy Lab, uses anonymized ADP payroll data to monitor labor market trends in occupations and industries with varying levels of AI exposure. The dashboard builds on the study “Canaries in the Coal Mine: Six Facts about the Recent Employment Effects of Artificial Intelligence” and is intended to identify early signals of changes in employment and wages.
The Takeoff Tracker measures indicators associated with the possibility of AI-driven economic acceleration. Drawing inspiration from the work of Nobel laureate William D. Nordhaus, the dashboard evaluates productivity, infrastructure, capital stock, and related metrics to gauge evidence of an AI-powered economic takeoff.
The Adoption Monitor tracks how workers and organizations are adopting AI technologies through surveys and international data sources, providing insights into where AI usage is expanding and where economic impacts may emerge next.
The Stanford Digital Economy Lab said additional dashboards, datasets, and measurement initiatives are planned in the coming months.
The Stanford Digital Economy Lab is an interdisciplinary research group focused on understanding how digital technologies are transforming work, organizations, and the broader economy. The lab is part of the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered AI and is co-sponsored by the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research.
KEY QUOTES:
“We are flying blind into one of the most consequential periods in world history. We cannot afford to rely on anecdotes or lagging indicators of AI’s effects. We need timely, trusted evidence to understand where AI is creating value and where it is disrupting work.”
Erik Brynjolfsson, Professor, Stanford University, and Director, Stanford Digital Economy Lab
“This data set is a breakthrough for the AI economy, giving economists, business leaders, and policymakers something they have long needed: a near real-time view of how AI is reshaping work. By analyzing the millions of jobs represented by ADP payroll data, we can track wages, hiring patterns, career mobility, and more to see how technological change is affecting the labor market.”
Dr. Nela Richardson, Chief Economist, ADP
“This is not a one-and-done, static website. It’ll be constantly growing and evolving to meet the challenges of the day. What we are showing at launch is the tip of the iceberg. Not only will it be of immense value to decision-makers who need better data, but running the project will itself be a vehicle for academics to do cutting-edge research.”
Christie Ko, Executive Director, Stanford Digital Economy Lab
