A new Brookings Institution paper suggests that the artificial intelligence revolution may unfold like a classic boom-and-bust cycle — albeit not in markets, but in wages. At first, automation could boost pay as workers become more productive alongside smarter tools. However, as AI systems master more tasks, the demand for human workers in those areas could decline, potentially pushing people into lower-value or slower-growing jobs — and erasing those early gains. In simulations, Konrad Kording,