When a state's power derives from AI rather than human labor, its dependence on its citizens diminishes. This creates a dangerous political risk, as the government loses the incentive to serve the populace, potentially leading to authoritarian regimes that are immune to popular revolt.

When governments derive revenue directly from a hyper-productive AI sector instead of citizen taxes, their incentive to represent public interests erodes. Similar to oil-rich states, they may become exploitative or neglectful, as their prosperity is decoupled from their populace's economic activity.

Proposals for the government to take equity stakes in AI firms are fundamentally about wealth redistribution to counter AI's disruptive effects. They serve as a potential infrastructure for Universal Basic Income (UBI) by creating a mechanism to distribute AI-generated profits directly to citizens.

Proposals like Universal Basic Income (UBI) misunderstand the fundamental impact of AI-driven job displacement. The primary challenge isn't replacing lost income but replacing the sense of meaning and purpose that work provides. Simply giving people money won't solve this existential problem and may even exacerbate feelings of uselessness.

Political scientist Francis Fukuyama argues Universal Basic Income (UBI) is an inadequate solution for AI-driven unemployment. It fails to address "thymos," the human psychological need for dignity and recognition that society confers through valued work, a loss especially acute for displaced white-collar professionals.

Unlike past technologies that automated specific tasks, AI threatens to automate all economically valuable human labor. This removes the fundamental, non-seizable leverage that the general populace holds, creating a power vacuum that can be filled by capital owners.

With UBI as the sole income source for an unemployable populace, economic advancement shifts from productive work to political activism. Groups will constantly lobby the government for a larger share of resources, making politics a high-stakes, unstable, and zero-sum game.

Offering UBI confirms the public's fear that their labor has no future value. This reinforces a power dynamic of tech leaders as "moral agents" and the public as passive "moral patients," stripping people of dignity and provoking resentment rather than gratitude.

As AIs increasingly perform all economically necessary work, the incentive for entities like governments and corporations to invest in human capital may disappear. This creates a long-term risk of a society where humans are no longer seen as a necessary resource to cultivate, leading to a permanent dependency.