Dispatch from Digital Planet: April 2026

Digital Planet > Dispatches > Dispatch from the Digital Planet: April 2026
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RESEARCH SPOTLIGHT
Will Wired Belts Become the New Rust Belts?
Will Wired Belts Become the New Rust Belts?
The rise of AI has deep implications for the employment landscape across America. Innovation hotspots, IT and tech hubs and university towns are among the most vulnerable sections of the nation. Our latest flagship report decodes how AI can impact the same people that are aiding its development.
PERSPECTIVES
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America's coming revolt is in the 'wired belt': Bhaskar Chakravorti
Financial Times
The rise of AI across America and its impact on jobs will have a cascading effect on the nation's political fabric. Bhaskar Chakravorti highlights how those impacted by AI job loss are likely to contribute to the political narrative and the implications of their involvement for the political fortunes of state and national leaders.
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The American AI Jobs Risk Index: How Wired Belts Could Become the Next Rust Belts: Bhaskar Chakravorti
Bhaskar Chakravorti highlights how AI-driven job disruption is set to hit specific professions, cities, and states hardest, making early intervention and targeted workforce planning essential before the tipping point arrives.
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As an AI Scholar, I am Now Putting a High Probability on an AI Doomsday: Bhaskar Chakravorti
Foreign Policy
From battlefield deployments to job cuts and volatile markets, a pattern is emerging: AI risks are converging. In this sharp take, Bhaskar Chakravorti connects the dots across sectors, arguing that together, they could tip AI from transformative to destabilising.
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Keynote: Digital Economy for Inclusive Global Growth
NewsX World
Speaking at the NXT Summit in New Delhi, Bhaskar Chakravorti showcased how a thriving digital economy that's based on 'Small AI' can bring in exponential improvements to the rural economies, small businesses and micro enterprises. He pointed out how the incremental benefits of these interventions can snowball into macroeconomic ripples and solve real-world challenges.
Skilling and Education in AI: Keynote by Bhaskar Chakravorti
IndiaAI
India is among the major nations that are effectively placed to spearhead 'small AI' initiatives for public governance, welfare, administration, skilling and growth. In his remarks at the India AI Impact Summit 2026, Bhaskar Chakravorti highlighted the need for these initiatives and went on to explain how they could position India as an innovation leader for the world.
IN CONVERSATION
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From Delhi to Bell Labs: The Game Theorist Who Decoded the World: Interview with Bhaskar Chakravorti
The Indianness Podcast
In a candid chat with the Indianness Podcast, Bhaskar Chakravorti recounts his academic journey, reflects on his learnings from global leaders and delves into his take on how Artificial Intelligence can be harnessed to drive real-world change for every citizen.
watch Part 1 watch Part 2
PAST EVENT
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How will Jobs be Affected by AI Where You Live and Work?
Understanding what’s ahead for America’s workforce—and how policymakers, educators, and business leaders can reinvent the future of work.
ANALYST OF THE MONTH
Turan Tashkin
I'VE BEEN WORKING ON
How AI is reshaping and will reshape the American economy across occupational, industrial, and geographic levels.
AN INSIGHT I DISCOVERED
AI's effects will be uneven across industries, affecting high- and low-paying jobs differently depending on the sector.
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IN THE NEWS
Massachusetts tops U.S. in AI job loss risk, Tufts report says   |  Boston.com
The jobs most vulnerable to AI — as new study predicts 9 million American workers to be displaced by bots in 5 years   |  New York Post
The Wired Belts are the new Rust Belts: Report ranks which jobs are most vulnerable   |  Phys.org
The jobs most vulnerable to AI — as new study predicts 9 million American workers to be displaced by bots in 5 years   |  Network Today
First-ever American AI Jobs Risk Index released by Tufts University   |  Brighter Side of News
India's economy is booming, but uneven growth clouds ascent   |  Manila Standard
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Digital Planet is an interdisciplinary research initiative of The Fletcher School's Institute for Business in the Global Context (IBGC) dedicated to understanding the impact of digital innovation on the world and providing actionable insights for policymakers, businesses, investors, and innovators.
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