As countries age and people work for longer, their presence and engagement are felt across the economy. For governments, this could be another source of growth. For this, ageing societies will have to be rebuilt around the elderly. This would require significant investments in physical infrastructure and human capital. Done well, that investment will raise output and hold down healthcare costs at the same time. We call this the silver multiplier investments whose returns cascade across the economy and are captured in many places at once.
Longevity investment currently focuses on biology rather than infrastructure. Investors are piling funding in drug discovery, cellular reprogramming and rejuvenation and even pet longevity. These, while useful, fail to factor in other determinants of living longer.
