New Delhi, March 6 -- The fear that artificial intelligence will lead to mass layoffs is spreading. Jack Dorsey, the co-founder of the financial technology firm Block, laid off nearly half of its workforce last week. Citing AI's labour-saving capabilities, he predicted other companies would soon follow suit: "Within the next year, I believe the majority of companies will reach the same conclusion and make similar structural changes."

As an economist, I disagree with Dorsey's prediction. Block is not representative of the tens of millions of US businesses, and the choice Dorsey made was not the only option. In conversations about AI, it's important to focus less on dystopian scenarios and more on ways to bring about an AI future that fost...