--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Some people think it's a law that when…" description: "\"Some people think it's a law that when productivity goes up, everybody benefits. There is no economic law that says technological progress has to benef..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/884/erik-brynjolfsson-9007_benefit_some-people-think-it-s-a-law-that-when-p_2319554.jpg" --- # Some people think it's a law that when productivity goes… ![“Some people think it's a law that when productivity goes up, everybody benefits. There is no economic law that says technological progress has to benefit everybody or even most people. It's possible that productivity can go up and the economic pie gets bigger, but the majority of people don't…” quote by Erik Brynjolfsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/884/erik-brynjolfsson-9007_benefit_some-people-think-it-s-a-law-that-when-p_2319554.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/884/erik-brynjolfsson-9007_benefit_some-people-think-it-s-a-law-that-when-p_2319554.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/884/erik-brynjolfsson-9007_benefit_some-people-think-it-s-a-law-that-when-p_2319554.jpg) > “Some people think it's a law that when productivity goes up, everybody benefits. There is no economic law that says technological progress has to benefit everybody or even most people. It's possible that productivity can go up and the economic pie gets bigger, but the majority of people don't share in that gain.” [Erik Brynjolfsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-brynjolfsson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Productivity gains don’t automatically benefit everyone; technological advances can increase wealth without equitable distribution. **In simple terms:** More output doesn’t guarantee shared wealth. Key Takeaway Address inequality in tech progress. Themes economics technology inequality productivity distribution Mood analytical concerned Type policy economic critical When to use this quote - business strategy - public policy - education reform - labor negotiations Key Concepts economic theory labor markets policy analysis Questions to Reflect On - How can societies ensure broader benefit from productivity? - What policies can mitigate tech‑driven inequality? A Different Perspective Policymakers may resist redistributive measures. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Benefit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/benefit/) [Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Pie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pie/) [Productivity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/productivity/) [Progress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/progress/) [Technological progress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/technological-progress/) [Technology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/technology/) ## Related quotes > [It is precisely through falling prices that the fruits of increased productivity and economic growth are spread throughout the market economy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-salerno/it-is-precisely-through-falling-prices-that-the-fruits-of-increased/) Joseph Salerno > [Efficiency, connectivity and productivity are all economic buzzwords that people have said high-speed rail will deliver. But at the heart of it what high-speed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-adonis-baron-adonis/efficiency-connectivity-and-productivity-are-all-economic-buzzwords/) [Andrew Adonis, Baron Adonis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-adonis-baron-adonis/) > [Productivity and the growth of productivity must be the first economic consideration at all times, not the last. That is the source of technological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-e-simon/productivity-and-the-growth-of-productivity-must-be-the-first/) [William E. Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-e-simon/) > [Everybody benefits when digital books are accessible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/torrey-peters/everybody-benefits-when-digital-books-are-accessible/) [Torrey Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/torrey-peters/) > [“Not everybody benefits from a misspent youth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-pynchon/not-everybody-benefits-from-a-misspent-youth/) [Thomas Pynchon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-pynchon/) > [Motivation, basically getting people to be happy at work, everybody - everybody benefits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-ariely/motivation-basically-getting-people-to-be-happy-at-work-everybody/) [Dan Ariely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-ariely/) > [Reforms ensure that everybody benefits and the state generates financial resources to provide for the really deserving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/piyush-goyal/reforms-ensure-that-everybody-benefits-and-the-state-generates/) [Piyush Goyal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/piyush-goyal/) > [“...apart from the seemingly magical internet, life in broad material terms isn't so different from what it was in 1953...The wonders portrayed in THE…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-cowen/apart-from-the-seemingly-magical-internet-life-in-broad-material/) [Tyler Cowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-cowen/) > [Despite our high rate of unemployment, 300,000 jobs go unfilled largely because many of the unemployed lack the skills needed today as a result…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-campbell/despite-our-high-rate-of-unemployment-300-000-jobs-go-unfilled/) [Kim Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-campbell/) > [“Advances in technology can be empowering, progressive and enriching. History has shown this across civilisations and societies. But it has also shown, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rasheed-ogunlaru/advances-in-technology-can-be-empowering-progressive-and-enriching/) [Rasheed Ogunlaru](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rasheed-ogunlaru/) > [More and more I come to value charity and love of one's fellow being above everything else...All our lauded technological progress-our very civilization-is like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/more-and-more-i-come-to-value-charity-and-love-of-one-s-fellow-being/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [Futurologists have been multiplying like flies since the day Herman Kahn made Cassandra's profession "scientific," yet somehow not one of them has come out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanislaw-lem/futurologists-have-been-multiplying-like-flies-since-the-day-herman/) [Stanislaw Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanislaw-lem/) > [Technological society leads to increasing numbers of people who cannot adapt to the inhuman rhythm of modern life with its emphasis on specialization. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-ellul/technological-society-leads-to-increasing-numbers-of-people-who/) [Jacques Ellul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-ellul/) > [The Church welcomes technological progress and receives it with love, for it is an indubitable fact that technological progress comes from God and, therefore,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-pius-xii/the-church-welcomes-technological-progress-and-receives-it-with-love/) [Pope Pius XII](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-pius-xii/) > [“All the tools, techniques and technology in the world are nothing without the head, heart and hands to use them wisely, kindly and mindfully”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rasheed-ogunlaru/all-the-tools-techniques-and-technology-in-the-world-are-nothing/) [Rasheed Ogunlaru](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rasheed-ogunlaru/) ## More by Erik Brynjolfsson > [“The greatest shortcoming of the human race is our inability to understand the exponential function.” —Albert A. Bartlett”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-brynjolfsson/the-greatest-shortcoming-of-the-human-race-is-our-inability-to/) [Erik Brynjolfsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-brynjolfsson/) > [“But analog photography peaked in 2000.2”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-brynjolfsson/but-analog-photography-peaked-in-2000-2/) [Erik Brynjolfsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-brynjolfsson/) > [“originated at the California research institute SRI International and was purchased by Apple in 2010, listened to what iPhone users were saying to it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-brynjolfsson/originated-at-the-california-research-institute-sri-international-and/) [Erik Brynjolfsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-brynjolfsson/) > [“Montessori classrooms emphasize self-directed learning, hands-on engagement with a wide variety of materials (including plants and animals), and a largely unstructured school day. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-brynjolfsson/montessori-classrooms-emphasize-self-directed-learning-hands-on/) [Erik Brynjolfsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-brynjolfsson/) > [“In fact, the ratio of CEO pay to average worker pay has increased from 70 in 1990 to 300 in 2005, and much of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-brynjolfsson/in-fact-the-ratio-of-ceo-pay-to-average-worker-pay-has-increased-from/) [Erik Brynjolfsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-brynjolfsson/) > [“there’s never been a better time to be a worker with special skills or the right education, because these people can use technology to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-brynjolfsson/there-s-never-been-a-better-time-to-be-a-worker-with-special-skills/) [Erik Brynjolfsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-brynjolfsson/) > [“Work saves a man from three great evils: boredom, vice, and need.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-brynjolfsson/work-saves-a-man-from-three-great-evils-boredom-vice-and-need/) [Erik Brynjolfsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-brynjolfsson/) > [“Kodak made its founder, George Eastman, a rich man, but it also provided middle-class jobs for generations of people and created a substantial share…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-brynjolfsson/kodak-made-its-founder-george-eastman-a-rich-man-but-it-also-provided/) [Erik Brynjolfsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-brynjolfsson/) > [Knowing how to keep someone motivated and how to keep a connection are skills humans have learned and evolved over hundreds of thousands of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-brynjolfsson/knowing-how-to-keep-someone-motivated-and-how-to-keep-a-connection/) [Erik Brynjolfsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-brynjolfsson/) > [“The many years that we all spend in schools learning skills like reading, writing, and arithmetic—as well as the additional learning that happens on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-brynjolfsson/the-many-years-that-we-all-spend-in-schools-learning-skills-like/) [Erik Brynjolfsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-brynjolfsson/) > [Computers get better, faster than anything else ever. A child's PlayStation today is more powerful than a military supercomputer from 1996. But our brains…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-brynjolfsson/computers-get-better-faster-than-anything-else-ever-a-child-s/) [Erik Brynjolfsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-brynjolfsson/) > [“Steven Pinker puts it, “The main lesson of thirty-five years of AI research is that the hard problems are easy and the easy problems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-brynjolfsson/steven-pinker-puts-it-the-main-lesson-of-thirty-five-years-of-ai/) [Erik Brynjolfsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-brynjolfsson/) > [“And the data on everything from air quality to commodity prices to levels of violence show improvement over time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-brynjolfsson/and-the-data-on-everything-from-air-quality-to-commodity-prices-to/) [Erik Brynjolfsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-brynjolfsson/) > [“the message the labor market is clearly sending is that it’s much easier to create value with highly educated workers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-brynjolfsson/the-message-the-labor-market-is-clearly-sending-is-that-it-s-much/) [Erik Brynjolfsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-brynjolfsson/) > [Technology has always been destroying jobs, and it has always been creating jobs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-brynjolfsson/technology-has-always-been-destroying-jobs-and-it-has-always-been/) [Erik Brynjolfsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-brynjolfsson/) [Explore all 75 Erik Brynjolfsson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-brynjolfsson/) ## More Benefit quotes > [Some Republicans gave up on winning the African-American vote, looking the other way or trying to benefit politically from racial polarization. I am here…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-mehlman/some-republicans-gave-up-on-winning-the-african-american-vote-looking/) [Ken Mehlman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-mehlman/) > [It's not always to the benefit of the story to have it so preordained.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-woodrell/it-s-not-always-to-the-benefit-of-the-story-to-have-it-so-preordained/) [Daniel Woodrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-woodrell/) > [I'm less concerned about whether being a good corporate citizen burnishes a company's reputation. That's just an added benefit. I believe it's a responsibility,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-burns/i-m-less-concerned-about-whether-being-a-good-corporate-citizen/) [Ursula Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-burns/) > [The benefit of living in a free society is that we all have the choice to be rich, poor, or middle class. The decision…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kiyosaki/the-benefit-of-living-in-a-free-society-is-that-we-all-have-the/) [Robert Kiyosaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kiyosaki/) > [As the future is never known with certainty, the evaluation of the prospective benefits requires the formation of expectations. An acceptable house, partner or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-t-mortensen/as-the-future-is-never-known-with-certainty-the-evaluation-of-the/) [Dale T. Mortensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-t-mortensen/) > [For us, my wife and I and all of my partners believe that corporations have to be corporate citizens, and individuals who benefit from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-walter/for-us-my-wife-and-i-and-all-of-my-partners-believe-that-corporations/) [Mark Walter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-walter/) > [The benefit to building a startup is that customers don't have the same kind of friction when they adopt new technology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-levie/the-benefit-to-building-a-startup-is-that-customers-don-t-have-the/) [Aaron Levie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-levie/) > [“Because the core of my personal philosophy is that everything that happens to us benefits us, I was also spared the futility of cursing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/because-the-core-of-my-personal-philosophy-is-that-everything-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Nothing is so good that impious and sacrilegious and wicked people cannot contort its proper benefit into evil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giordano-bruno/nothing-is-so-good-that-impious-and-sacrilegious-and-wicked-people/) [Giordano Bruno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giordano-bruno/) > [“Everything I think I’m doing for my own benefit has some incidental evolutionary advantage!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-hamantaschen/everything-i-think-i-m-doing-for-my-own-benefit-has-some-incidental/) J.R. 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Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-e-wilson/) > [To use for our exclusive benefit what is not ours is theft.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-marti/to-use-for-our-exclusive-benefit-what-is-not-ours-is-theft/) [Jose Marti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-marti/) > [There is almost no topic that can't benefit from being talked about in a humorous way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-parris/there-is-almost-no-topic-that-can-t-benefit-from-being-talked-about/) [Rachel Parris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-parris/) [Browse all 533 Benefit quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/benefit/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Some people think it's a law that when productivity goes up, everybody benefits. There is no economic law that says technological progress has to benefit everybody or even most people. 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