# David Autor

Professor of Economics, MIT. TIME100 AI 2026, Thinkers. The MIT labor economist dropped out of Columbia and worked as a software developer at a Boston hospital before finishing college. ([en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Autor))

- Born: 1967 ([en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Autor))
- Education: PhD, Public policy, Harvard University, 1999; MA, Public policy, Harvard University, 1994; BA, Psychology, Tufts University, 1989; attended, no degree, Columbia University ([en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Autor))
- Career: MIT (Head of Department; Rubinfeld Professor of Economics, 1999 to now) ([en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Autor), [economics.mit.edu](https://economics.mit.edu/sites/default/files/2026-08/DautorCV-20260827.pdf), [news.mit.edu](https://news.mit.edu/2026/david-autor-named-head-department-economics-0626))
- TIME profile: https://time.com/collection/time100-ai/2026/david-autor/
- Profile: https://www.autumn.ai/resources/most-influential-people-in-ai/david-autor

- Dropped out of Columbia and worked as an administrative assistant and software developer at a Boston hospital before finishing college at Tufts. ([en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Autor))
- Before grad school he spent three years running computer-skills classes for low-income children and adults in San Francisco and South Africa. ([economics.mit.edu](https://economics.mit.edu/people/faculty/david-h-autor))
- His China Shock research with David Dorn and Gordon Hanson showed Chinese import competition durably lowered US wages and employment. ([economics.mit.edu](https://economics.mit.edu/people/faculty/david-h-autor))
- Calls AI 'a crappy automation technology' that cannot replace a worker with judgment and domain knowledge. ([time.com](https://time.com/collection/time100-ai/2026/david-autor/))
- Is a Google Technology and Society Visiting Fellow for 2025 to 2027 while heading MIT's economics department. ([economics.mit.edu](https://economics.mit.edu/sites/default/files/2026-08/DautorCV-20260827.pdf))