The Atlantic Quotes Professor Polcz on 'Universal Basic Capital' Idea

Professor Sarah Polcz spoke to The Atlantic for a July 2 story headlined “Why Everyone Is Suddenly Talking About ’Universal Basic Capital.’”

The article discussed varied proposals advocating for the idea of giving everyone an ownership stake in AI companies in case they create “catastrophic” wealth disparities between their owners and workers displaced by their product.

The Atlantic points to the American A.I. Sovereign Wealth Fund Act, Sen. Bernie Sanders’ proposal that AI companies give a 50 percent equity stake in their business to the federal government for a “sovereign wealth fund” used for payments to Americans and to fund public programs.

Polcz, whose co-written Columbia Journal of Tax Law article influenced Sanders, and who helped draft the bill, told the Atlantic that “This is about giving the public a seat at the table. … If you just give everyone individual accounts, you miss a big opportunity to shape how the technology develops and who it serves.”

Sarah Polcz's research explores the intersection of law and psychological science. Her scholarship focuses on how basic cognitive processes relate to more complex social phenomena such as market culture and the moral intuitions underlying intellectual property law.