How Progress Ends
Reviews & Praise
“In How Progress Ends, Carl Benedikt Frey gives a bold answer to one of history’s—and humanity’s—most essential questions: what drives technology and innovation? Epic in scope but packed with rigorous detail, it looks at what creates and reverses societal gains, asks how we should best manage the pursuit of new technologies, and hints at what, in the midst of an AI revolution, happens next. One of the key thinkers in the field, Frey delivers a grand, urgent must-read for anyone who cares about our past, present, and future.”
​
Mustafa Suleyman, CEO of Microsoft AI
​
​
“Debates about AI fluctuate between hopes that it will bring us boundless capabilities and riches and fears that it will reduce us to servitude or worse. But in How Progress Ends, Carl Benedikt Frey shows that the real question is how human creativity and innovation will adapt to the age of powerful AI. I can’t imagine a better place to find answers than this far-ranging, intelligent book, which reminds us that human institutions and culture have always been critical to innovation and progress.”
​
Daron Acemoglu, Nobel Prize–winning economist and coauthor of Power and Progress: Our Thousand-Year Struggle Over Technology and Prosperity
​
​
“Frey masterfully reveals why some nations thrive while others stumble in periods of technological upheaval. At a time when AI reshapes our world, this book offers vital lessons for political leaders seeking to harness innovation while avoiding the institutional traps that have derailed progress throughout history.”
​
Tony Blair, Executive Chairman of the Tony Blair Institute and former Prime Minister of Britain and Northern Ireland
​​
​
"How Progress Ends is a deeply researched effort to come to grips with one of the most interesting questions in economic history: what drove innovation and economic growth in the past, and can it be sustained? In the best traditions of giants such as Joseph Schumpeter and Mancur Olson, Frey provides a thoughtful and erudite analysis that nobody interested in these questions can ignore."
​
Joel Mokyr, author of A Culture of Growth: The Origins of the Modern Economy
​
​
“Progress is often thought of as a succession of technologies, but major new inventions from the steam engine to generative AI disrupt societies before they deliver improved living standards. How Progress Ends is a fascinating account of the way culture and institutions interact with new technologies, concluding that conditions in the United States and China today point to a future of stagnation despite their dominance at the AI frontier.”
​
Diane Coyle, author of The Measure of Progress: Counting What Really Matters
​
​
“Why do some eras and countries experience rapid technological advances while others stagnate? In How Progress Ends, Carl Benedikt Frey draws on examples as diverse as Tsarist Russia, Mao’s China, and America’s AI boom to show how economic institutions promote or prevent technological progress, and how vested interests and monopolies mobilize to block change. Essential reading for anyone looking to understand the drivers of technological progress.”
​
Chris Miller, New York Times bestselling author of Chip War: The Fight for the World’s Most Critical Technology