Who really benefits from the AI boom?

If you’ve been hearing about Trump’s AI Action Plan and wondering who it actually benefits, you’re not alone.

On today’s episode of Equity, Rebecca Bellan caught up with Amba Kak and Dr. Sarah Myers West from the AI Now Institute, a think tank focused on the social implications of AI and the consolidation of power in the tech industry. Their recent report, dubbed Artificial Power, lays out the political economy driving today’s AI frenzy and what’s at stake for everyone else.

Artificial Power pushes back on what AI Now calls the “too big to fail” myth, arguing that AI companies are pouring billions into massive compute infrastructure and foundational models, often with government support, despite shaky business models and limited public accountability. 

That push to scale and reach AGI, or artificial general intelligence, before 2030 has real-world consequences that don’t disappear with the promises that AI will someday solve humanity’s hardest problems. In the short term, societies are already facing environmental degradation, discriminatory algorithms, dismantled democratic institutions, lack of data privacy, and national security risk. 

Kak and West say these outcomes are the result of a series of choices, not an unpreventable reality. 

“The future we’re being sold is not inevitable,” Kak explained. 

Listen to the full episode to hear about:

AI’s growing consolidation and how it mirrors Big Tech’s power dynamics.

Why Silicon Valley is cheering on Trump’s AI agenda, and the challenges of regulating AI.

The disconnect between AGI hype and current, real-world harms.

What a democratic, just, and accountable AI future could look like.

Equity will be back Friday with our weekly news roundup, so stay tuned.

Equity is TechCrunch’s flagship podcast, produced by Theresa Loconsolo, and posts every Wednesday and Friday. Subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod.