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See the agenda for timing of specific conference segments.
Event Details
Date & Time
April 3, 2026
9:40am to 2:45pm
April 3, 2026
9:40am to 2:45pm
Location
This was a hybrid event, with most panelists participating in-person and the general audience attending virtually.
Audience
The conference was open to the public, academics, practitioners, and policymakers virtually. There were opportunities for Q&A during the event.
Media
This event was open to the media to attend virtually and in person. All remarks were on the record, and a recording was made available afterward. For media inquiries, please contact Ellen Simon at Ellen.Simon@ny.frb.org.
Conference Organizers
Nina Boyarchenko
Rajashri Chakrabarti
Marco Del Negro
Keshav Dogra
Agenda
Agenda
| 9:40am | Introduction: Marco Del Negro (New York Fed) (00:00:15 in video) |
| 9:45am–11:00am | Session 1: Micro-level evidence of a K-shaped economy (00:04:06 in video) Is there any evidence of a K-shaped economy in micro-level data---that is, is the economy splitting into two tiers, with AI or other forces creating diverging outcomes for the wealthy compared to others? Have consumption and labor market outcomes evolved differently for individuals at different points in the income and wealth distribution in recent years? Is there evidence of bifurcations by other demographic attributes, such as by age, gender or race? How have the social safety net and other policies affected recent trends in income, consumption and/or wealth inequality, and what policies (if any) could reverse these trends? What types of occupations and workers might be disproportionately affected by the growth of AI in the short, medium and long term? How might AI reshape the future income and wealth distribution? Chair: Rajashri Chakrabarti (New York Fed) Panelists: Martha Gimbel (Yale University, Budget Lab) | Presentation Pascal Noel (University of Chicago, Booth) | Presentation James Ziliak (University of Kentucky) | Presentation |
| 11:15am–12:30pm | Session 2: Diverging asset markets (01:23:39 in video) Is concentration in stock market gains, such as that currently among the “Magnificent 7,” a common feature of markets during episodes of technological innovation? What are the financial stability implications of such bifurcated asset markets? Are asset price booms associated with periods of technological innovation confined to equity markets or are they also present in debt markets? What metrics may be used to evaluate whether asset valuations reflect fundamentals or excess exuberance during such periods? Can we identify likely turning points in the valuations cycle? Does the increased concentration of stock market gains imply that recessions need no longer be associated with stock market declines? Chair: Nina Boyarchenko (New York Fed) Panelists: Krishna Guha (Evercore ISI) | Presentation Markus Brunnermeier (Princeton University) | Presentation Samuel Hanson (Harvard Business School) | Presentation |
| 12:30pm–1:30pm | Lunch |
| 1:30pm-2:45pm | Session 3: Implications of the K-shaped economy for macroeconomic dynamics
and monetary policy (02:39:03 in video) To what extent has GDP growth in recent years been driven by the spending of high-income households and by investment in AI? What effect will advances in AI have on productivity growth and the distribution of income? What are the implications of increasing consumption, income and wealth inequality for macroeconomic dynamics? Is wealth inequality a consequence of the divergence between asset valuations and the macroeconomy, or also a source of this divergence? Do recent trends in inequality have any implications for the conduct or transmission of monetary policy? Chair: Keshav Dogra (New York Fed) Panelists: Matthieu Gomez (Columbia University) | Presentation Pascual Restrepo (Yale University) | Presentation Gianluca Violante (Princeton University) | Presentation |
