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Wealth Concentration May Shrink Labor Share If Rich Never Satiate on Capital

Dwarkesh Patel Podcast · Alex Imas and Phil Trammell – What remains scarce after AGI? · June 4, 2026
Wealth Concentration May Shrink Labor Share If Rich Never Satiate on Capital
Dwarkesh Patel Podcast
Dwarkesh Patel Podcast
Alex Imas and Phil Trammell – What remains scarce after AGI?
"There are currently some rich people that don't seem to satiate quickly in capital. And so maybe in the long run they'll save the most. And that does seem sort of right to me. You just need a couple of agents that think this way for this to be the dominant thing determining the preferences of the whole economy, because this part is growing much faster than the other parts of the economy."
Phil Trammell argues that if wealthy individuals like Elon Musk never stop wanting more capital for projects like space colonization, their preferences could dominate the economy through compound growth. This evolutionary selection for 'greedy optimizers' could drive labor share to zero even without technological unemployment, contradicting standard economic models that assume diminishing marginal utility.
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Dwarkesh Patel Podcast
Dwarkesh Patel Podcast

Alex Imas and Phil Trammell – What remains scarce after AGI?

August 3, 2026 · 5 Egleze moments
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