The Journal. · The Wall Street Journal & Spotify Studios

The AI Economic Doomsday Report That Shook Wall Street

February 27, 2026·21 min·1 clip
A viral AI report predicting 10.2% unemployment shook the stock market, causing major tech stocks to plunge.
This episode investigates a viral AI doomsday report from Citrini Research that predicted massive unemployment and economic collapse, triggering a stock market sell-off. It explores the report's bleak vision of AI replacing white-collar jobs and creating 'ghost GDP,' while also examining critiques and Wall Street's struggle to understand AI's true impact.

As heard by us

A sharp Wall Street story about how AI optimism can curdle into recession fear.

The Journal turns a viral Citrini Research post into a brisk Wall Street story about AI optimism curdling into macroeconomic anxiety. David Uberti walks through the report's bleak 2028-style scenario: AI gets better at coding and commerce, agents hunt for cheaper ways to…

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