Nick O'Donovan
@nickod.bsky.social
Political scientist and occasional policy wonk, interested in big tech, the digital economy, taxation and inequality. Author of Pursuing the Knowledge Economy: https://www.agendapub.com/page/detail/pursuing-the-knowledge-economy/?k=9781788215145
@DrNickOD
@DrNickOD
Reposted by Nick O'Donovan
There's an important debate to be had on the wisdom of simultaneously increasing employer NICs, the minimum wage and employment rights. The jobs market does look weaker. But an alternative reading of this chart is that employment has just continued on its pre-election trend?
August 31, 2025 at 11:18 AM
There's an important debate to be had on the wisdom of simultaneously increasing employer NICs, the minimum wage and employment rights. The jobs market does look weaker. But an alternative reading of this chart is that employment has just continued on its pre-election trend?
Reposted by Nick O'Donovan
This kind of descriptive analysis is v interesting- well worth a read
What makes recent technological developments so devastating is not their novelty, but rather that the political economy of developed democracies is already set up to ensure the proceeds of growth are not widely shared.
You can download the full article for free here:
doi.org/10.1093/ser/...
[5/5]
You can download the full article for free here:
doi.org/10.1093/ser/...
[5/5]
Prosperity and inequality in mature knowledge economies
Abstract. In the 1990s, policymakers in affluent democracies viewed the ‘knowledge economy’ as a solution to economic stagnation and social exclusion. Yet,
doi.org
September 1, 2025 at 7:30 AM
This kind of descriptive analysis is v interesting- well worth a read
***New article announcement!***
Prosperity and inequality in mature knowledge economies
Barely a week goes by without new reports of generative AI displacing high-skilled knowledge work. But this is part of a trend stretching back more than 20 years. [1/5]
Prosperity and inequality in mature knowledge economies
Barely a week goes by without new reports of generative AI displacing high-skilled knowledge work. But this is part of a trend stretching back more than 20 years. [1/5]
September 1, 2025 at 6:17 AM
***New article announcement!***
Prosperity and inequality in mature knowledge economies
Barely a week goes by without new reports of generative AI displacing high-skilled knowledge work. But this is part of a trend stretching back more than 20 years. [1/5]
Prosperity and inequality in mature knowledge economies
Barely a week goes by without new reports of generative AI displacing high-skilled knowledge work. But this is part of a trend stretching back more than 20 years. [1/5]
Will AI eliminate high-skilled, high-paid knowledge work? If the recent past is anything to go by, yes. My new article explores how knowledge work has already become more capital-intensive since the early 2000s, undermining hopes of inclusive prosperity: doi.org/10.1093/ser/...
Prosperity and inequality in mature knowledge economies
Abstract. In the 1990s, policymakers in affluent democracies viewed the ‘knowledge economy’ as a solution to economic stagnation and social exclusion. Yet,
doi.org
August 26, 2025 at 11:31 AM
Will AI eliminate high-skilled, high-paid knowledge work? If the recent past is anything to go by, yes. My new article explores how knowledge work has already become more capital-intensive since the early 2000s, undermining hopes of inclusive prosperity: doi.org/10.1093/ser/...
A reminder of the impermanence of currency hierarchies from the US Commercial and Financial Chronicle, 1 December 1877: 'in the great exchange markets of the world... our paper is not current and never will be.'
July 16, 2025 at 8:03 AM
A reminder of the impermanence of currency hierarchies from the US Commercial and Financial Chronicle, 1 December 1877: 'in the great exchange markets of the world... our paper is not current and never will be.'
Reposted by Nick O'Donovan
💰One-off wealth taxes: what can we learn from history? @nickod.bsky.social
TODAY on the Economics Observatory👇
TODAY on the Economics Observatory👇
One-off wealth taxes: what can we learn from history? - Economics Observatory
In the wake of crises that have caused national debts to grow rapidly beyond ‘normal’ levels, the idea of drawing on private wealth in order to pay down those debts has sometimes gained currency.
buff.ly
July 7, 2025 at 4:32 PM
💰One-off wealth taxes: what can we learn from history? @nickod.bsky.social
TODAY on the Economics Observatory👇
TODAY on the Economics Observatory👇
Reposted by Nick O'Donovan
The #climate crisis leads to unprecedented losses & damages to real and financial #assets. But the dynamics and consequences of asset stranding are only poorly understood.
If you want to change this, please join
@trgn.bsky.social, @vapunkt.bsky.social & me for our #SASE2025 Mini-Conference (1/2)
If you want to change this, please join
@trgn.bsky.social, @vapunkt.bsky.social & me for our #SASE2025 Mini-Conference (1/2)
October 15, 2024 at 1:18 PM
The #climate crisis leads to unprecedented losses & damages to real and financial #assets. But the dynamics and consequences of asset stranding are only poorly understood.
If you want to change this, please join
@trgn.bsky.social, @vapunkt.bsky.social & me for our #SASE2025 Mini-Conference (1/2)
If you want to change this, please join
@trgn.bsky.social, @vapunkt.bsky.social & me for our #SASE2025 Mini-Conference (1/2)
Really looking forward to this online seminar with Quinn Slobodian, author of Crack-Up Capitalism and Hayek's Bastards, 5pm BST on Weds 4th June.
It promises to be a fascinating discussion of neoliberalism and its discontents. The link to sign up (for free!) is:
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/professor-...
It promises to be a fascinating discussion of neoliberalism and its discontents. The link to sign up (for free!) is:
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/professor-...
May 19, 2025 at 8:20 AM
Really looking forward to this online seminar with Quinn Slobodian, author of Crack-Up Capitalism and Hayek's Bastards, 5pm BST on Weds 4th June.
It promises to be a fascinating discussion of neoliberalism and its discontents. The link to sign up (for free!) is:
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/professor-...
It promises to be a fascinating discussion of neoliberalism and its discontents. The link to sign up (for free!) is:
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/professor-...
Excellent (if depressing) article from the FT. Fixating on skills supply in the "knowledge economy", without considering other bottlenecks (housing/transport, access to capital, access to intellectual property/data etc), is tantamount to pumping air into a punctured tyre.
www.ft.com/content/cd13...
www.ft.com/content/cd13...
Is the UK failing its graduates?
Young people are bearing the brunt of a long-term slowdown in the labour market, data shows
www.ft.com
May 13, 2025 at 8:28 AM
Excellent (if depressing) article from the FT. Fixating on skills supply in the "knowledge economy", without considering other bottlenecks (housing/transport, access to capital, access to intellectual property/data etc), is tantamount to pumping air into a punctured tyre.
www.ft.com/content/cd13...
www.ft.com/content/cd13...
Reposted by Nick O'Donovan
The lesson of Donald Trump’s business career would seem to be, to adapt Keynes, that Donald Trump can remain irrational longer than Donald Trump can remain solvent.
April 9, 2025 at 9:17 AM
The lesson of Donald Trump’s business career would seem to be, to adapt Keynes, that Donald Trump can remain irrational longer than Donald Trump can remain solvent.
Reposted by Nick O'Donovan
📢 Next week is our first seminar of the @psabcpe.bsky.social online series with fantastic @ankehassel.bsky.social talking about Growth Strategies And Welfare Reforms: How Nations Cope With Economic Transitions💡Please sign up 💻 & share widely ‼️
March 10, 2025 at 10:15 AM
📢 Next week is our first seminar of the @psabcpe.bsky.social online series with fantastic @ankehassel.bsky.social talking about Growth Strategies And Welfare Reforms: How Nations Cope With Economic Transitions💡Please sign up 💻 & share widely ‼️
Reposted by Nick O'Donovan
The European Union remains a funny animal.
Outside observers: rich place, lots of industry, lower debt levels than US/China. Should be able to rearm quickly and cheaply if they coordinate decision-making.
Leaders on the inside: I don’t trust my neighbour so let’s bicker while the house burns down.
Outside observers: rich place, lots of industry, lower debt levels than US/China. Should be able to rearm quickly and cheaply if they coordinate decision-making.
Leaders on the inside: I don’t trust my neighbour so let’s bicker while the house burns down.
March 3, 2025 at 10:32 AM
The European Union remains a funny animal.
Outside observers: rich place, lots of industry, lower debt levels than US/China. Should be able to rearm quickly and cheaply if they coordinate decision-making.
Leaders on the inside: I don’t trust my neighbour so let’s bicker while the house burns down.
Outside observers: rich place, lots of industry, lower debt levels than US/China. Should be able to rearm quickly and cheaply if they coordinate decision-making.
Leaders on the inside: I don’t trust my neighbour so let’s bicker while the house burns down.
"Man rejects means, demands end."
February 12, 2025 at 3:51 PM
"Man rejects means, demands end."
Reposted by Nick O'Donovan
This was an excellent piece by @craigpberry.bsky.social & @nickod.bsky.social on the relationship between equality and innovation, busting the idea that the two need be in tension:
journals.lwbooks.co.uk/renewal/vol-...
journals.lwbooks.co.uk/renewal/vol-...
The productivist welfare state: how tackling inequality can unleash innovation - Lawrence Wishart
In UK welfare debates, equality and economic growth are often treated as opposites: one inevitably comes at the expense of the o
journals.lwbooks.co.uk
February 7, 2025 at 1:31 PM
This was an excellent piece by @craigpberry.bsky.social & @nickod.bsky.social on the relationship between equality and innovation, busting the idea that the two need be in tension:
journals.lwbooks.co.uk/renewal/vol-...
journals.lwbooks.co.uk/renewal/vol-...
Reposted by Nick O'Donovan
Lost much of the afternoon to this.
It’s excellent.
It’s excellent.
The Intellectual Origins of the Modern International Tax Regime: Edwin R. A. Seligman, Economic Allegiance, and the League of Nations’ 1923 Report by Ajay Mehrotra escholarship.org/uc/item/3qn3...
The Intellectual Origins of the Modern International Tax Regime: Edwin R. A. Seligman, Economic Allegiance, and the League of Nations’ 1923 Report
Author(s): Mehrotra, Ajay | Abstract: In March 1923, a group of prominent political economists and tax law experts gathered in Geneva, Switzerland to discuss the post–World War I framework for a new i...
escholarship.org
February 5, 2025 at 6:35 PM
Lost much of the afternoon to this.
It’s excellent.
It’s excellent.
If you're interested in DeepSeek and the competitive landscape around generative AI, you might find this article from a while back interesting: journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10....
(Feeling particularly smug about this passage this week...)
(Feeling particularly smug about this passage this week...)
January 29, 2025 at 8:51 AM
If you're interested in DeepSeek and the competitive landscape around generative AI, you might find this article from a while back interesting: journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10....
(Feeling particularly smug about this passage this week...)
(Feeling particularly smug about this passage this week...)
Reposted by Nick O'Donovan
📊 Last week, we released our new central bank speeches database, which almost doubles the coverage of the @BIS_org
database.
We also released a tool to facilitate research on central bank communication: meet the #CBSpeeches explorer! Four tools for the price of one (=free!)
database.
We also released a tool to facilitate research on central bank communication: meet the #CBSpeeches explorer! Four tools for the price of one (=free!)
January 27, 2025 at 3:24 PM
📊 Last week, we released our new central bank speeches database, which almost doubles the coverage of the @BIS_org
database.
We also released a tool to facilitate research on central bank communication: meet the #CBSpeeches explorer! Four tools for the price of one (=free!)
database.
We also released a tool to facilitate research on central bank communication: meet the #CBSpeeches explorer! Four tools for the price of one (=free!)
Reposted by Nick O'Donovan
Really recommend this excellent rebuttal to the 'Foundations' essay
It shouldn't need pointing out but you really can't wonder at the ability of France, South Korea, or post-WW2 Britain at building things *and* argue that the state simply can't do things
open.substack.com/pub/energyne...
It shouldn't need pointing out but you really can't wonder at the ability of France, South Korea, or post-WW2 Britain at building things *and* argue that the state simply can't do things
open.substack.com/pub/energyne...
Without Foundation
A critique of the essay Foundations by Bowman, Southwood and Hughes
open.substack.com
December 18, 2024 at 4:56 PM
Really recommend this excellent rebuttal to the 'Foundations' essay
It shouldn't need pointing out but you really can't wonder at the ability of France, South Korea, or post-WW2 Britain at building things *and* argue that the state simply can't do things
open.substack.com/pub/energyne...
It shouldn't need pointing out but you really can't wonder at the ability of France, South Korea, or post-WW2 Britain at building things *and* argue that the state simply can't do things
open.substack.com/pub/energyne...
Reposted by Nick O'Donovan
💯 As I tell my students, having AI write your philosophy paper is like sending a robot to the gym for you and expecting to reap the health benefits.
Writing is thinking.
It’s not a part of the process that can be skipped; it’s the entire point.
It’s not a part of the process that can be skipped; it’s the entire point.
This is what's so baffling about so many suggestions for AI in the humanities classroom: they mistake the product for the point. Writing outlines and essays is important not because you need to make outlines and essays but because that's how you learn to think with/through complex ideas.
December 12, 2024 at 4:08 PM
💯 As I tell my students, having AI write your philosophy paper is like sending a robot to the gym for you and expecting to reap the health benefits.
Really interesting which parties have sharp variations in support across ages groups and which don't (Lib Dems relatively cross-generational in appeal; Reform cross-generational among men only).
Handy graphic - voting by age and gender, #GE2024 (Source: www.politicshome.com/news/article...).
December 12, 2024 at 10:39 AM
Really interesting which parties have sharp variations in support across ages groups and which don't (Lib Dems relatively cross-generational in appeal; Reform cross-generational among men only).
Reposted by Nick O'Donovan
Andy Haldane says “Today’s Great Division is a slow puncture, silently undermining us over more than half a century.”
“Malign neglect of social capital has sowed the seeds of many of today’s largest problems, economic, social and spatial. “
“Malign neglect of social capital has sowed the seeds of many of today’s largest problems, economic, social and spatial. “
December 8, 2024 at 11:55 AM
Andy Haldane says “Today’s Great Division is a slow puncture, silently undermining us over more than half a century.”
“Malign neglect of social capital has sowed the seeds of many of today’s largest problems, economic, social and spatial. “
“Malign neglect of social capital has sowed the seeds of many of today’s largest problems, economic, social and spatial. “
Reposted by Nick O'Donovan
Reposted by Nick O'Donovan
🇷🇴⚖️Tremendous: the Romanian Constitutional Court, tasked with hearing electoral protests and validating the elections, decides to annul the first round of the presidential election (effectively ordering them to be retaken in entirety at a later date). 1/
🚨🚨🚨 Enormous news: the Constitutional Court of Romania has unanimously decided to cancel the presidential elections, G4 Media reports.
The electoral process for the election of the Romanian president has to be re-run in its entirety, with the government setting a new date.
The electoral process for the election of the Romanian president has to be re-run in its entirety, with the government setting a new date.
December 6, 2024 at 1:28 PM
🇷🇴⚖️Tremendous: the Romanian Constitutional Court, tasked with hearing electoral protests and validating the elections, decides to annul the first round of the presidential election (effectively ordering them to be retaken in entirety at a later date). 1/
Whether you agree with it or not, this thread from someone claiming to be an anonymous civil servant offers an interesting counter-perspective to the frustrations voiced by Labour "sources" in @hzeffman.bsky.social's recent article (which is also well worth your time).
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
December 5, 2024 at 9:08 PM
Whether you agree with it or not, this thread from someone claiming to be an anonymous civil servant offers an interesting counter-perspective to the frustrations voiced by Labour "sources" in @hzeffman.bsky.social's recent article (which is also well worth your time).
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Reposted by Nick O'Donovan
Someone went down this rabbit hole and wrote a fascinating post about it: centreforaileadership.org/resources/an...
December 2, 2024 at 10:29 PM
Someone went down this rabbit hole and wrote a fascinating post about it: centreforaileadership.org/resources/an...