Facebook cofounder and others pledge $10 million toward universal basic income research
Amazon stores won't need cashiers. Uber cars won't require drivers. It's a new economy where many human jobs vanish. And some say the solution may be a universal basic income.
On Thursday, the Economic Security Project, a research alliance of technologists and activists, announced a $10 million fund to study universal basic income over the next two years, Quartz reported.
Universal basic income provides every citizen with a standard set of money no matter their employment status. Research on the topic is sparse and so it remains to be seen whether the system could be successful and sustainable.
That's why Facebook cofounder Chris Hughes along with Sam Altman, president of the start-up accelerator Y Combinator, and more than 100 other organizers have started a fund and are collecting donations to "research, experiment, and inspire others to think through how best to design cash programs that empower Americans to live and work in the new economy," the organization's "statement of belief" reads.
"In 1970, 92% of American 30-year-olds earned more than their parents did at a similar age...In 2014, that number fell to 51%," Altman tweeted Thursday, citing a Wall Street Journal report on stagnating middle class wages.
There's a sense of urgency given the coming Trump administration. The announcement comes exactly one month after the election of Donald Trump.
“We have more questions than answers,” Hughes, who most recently ran The New Republic magazine, told Quartz. “But we do know we can unite around the fact that financial security should be a human right and cash is an underutilized tool.”
Recipients of the research grants include American Center, Center for Popular Democracy, Chesapeake Climate Action Network, the Roosevelt Institute and the Niskanen Center.
Kerry Flynn is a business reporter for Mashable covering the tech industry. She previously reported on social media companies, mobile apps and startups for International Business Times. She has also written for The Huffington Post, Forbes and Money magazine. Kerry studied environmental science and economics at Harvard College, where she led The Harvard Crimson's metro news and design teams and played mellophone in the Band. When not listening to startup pitches, she runs half-marathons, plays with puppies and pretends to like craft beer.
