With AI, Europe has within its reach the biggest productivity opportunity the world has seen since computers and the internet. Much of Europe missed that last wave. It cannot afford to miss this one. It is a chance to break out of decades of sluggish growth and meet the costs of an ageing society. That is if it makes the right decisions, makes them quickly, and manages the risks without giving up the upside. It would mean higher wages, rising living standards and the revenue to fund public services without relying on ever higher taxes or more debt. The question is whether Europe will genuinely seize the opportunity and seize it with sufficient speed.
Over these past two days I joined Europe's finance ministers in Dublin, at the Eurogroup to discuss productivity and at the informal ECOFIN to discuss AI. Europe's productivity challenge, which is real, and the AI opportunity, are two sides of the same coin. For Europe, AI is not just a technology question. It is a growth, incomes and budget question and increasingly one of competitiveness and security.
