Scott Santens

@scottsantens

Writer and Unconditional / Universal Basic Income (UBI) advocate Founder & CEO of UBI-focused nonprofit ITSAfoundation.org Sign and share the AI Pledge for Humanity for UBI: aipledgeforhumanity.org My UBI FAQ: scottsantens.com 📩 linktr.ee/scottsantens

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Scott Santens@scottsantens· 17d

Basic income is the power to say no to somebody else's work and the freedom to say yes to your own work—which is not work at all—it's play.

MARK TWAIN:

"What I have done I have done, because it has been play. If it had been work I shouldn't have done it. Who was it who said, 'Blessed is the man who has found his work'? Whoever it was he had the right idea in his mind. Mark you, he says his work not somebody else's work. The work that is really a man's own work is play and not work at all. Cursed is the man who has found some other man's work and cannot lose it. When we talk about the great workers of the world we really mean the great players of the world. The fellows who groan and sweat under the weary load of toil that they bear never can hope to do anything great. How can they when their souls are in a ferment of revolt against the employment of their hands and brains? The product of slavery, intellectual or physical, can never be great."

Scott Santens@scottsantens· 18d

Scott Santens@scottsantens· 20d

Old poll (2020) and bad poll wording. Here's a very recent poll framed in response to AI.

Scott Santens@scottsantens· 24d

I'm impressed by what Hunter Biden is saying here. He appears to understand the assignment that so many elites refuse to. New New Deal. Healthcare as a human right. A dividend for all because AI was built on the whole of human inheritance. And truth and reconciliation plus systemic reforms.

Hunter Biden

@HunterBiden

I spent the last few months talking to people across the political spectrum, and to people who want nothing to do with politics at all. Here is what I learned.

We are not a divided country. We are a country being divided, on purpose, by an American oligarchy that profits from the fight. They've captured our government, denied our healthcare, looted our treasury, and saddled us with crippling debt.

I believe in a New New Deal.

Healthcare as a human right. The right of every family to a decent home, and an end to endless wars.

And a dividend paid to every American from the Al economy, because these machines were built on the whole of human inheritance.

That inheritance belongs to all of us,

And a dividend paid to every American from the Al economy, because these machines were built on the whole of human inheritance. That inheritance belongs to all of us, and not just to the handful of men playing God with our very existence.

And none of it happens if we just move on. Donald Trump, his family, and his administration are robbing us blind, not just of our money, but of our faith in one another, and they have to answer for it. Truth and reconciliation, not revenge. Then we break the system that let them do it.

The question is not whether we will lose our democracy. The question is whether we will fight to take back what has already been stolen.

I learned in recovery that you can't heal what you won't name. Neither can a country.

Scott Santens@scottsantens· 26d

This wasn't in Idiocracy, but it totally could have been.

Scott Santens@scottsantens· 28d

In short, tax the land, not the improvements to it. And exemptions are possible just as already used. This LVT Substack has lots more to read: progressandpoverty.substack.com/p/so-you-wan...

Scott Santens@scottsantens· Jul 2

“We need UBI if we have any chance of having a smooth transition from a labor centered economy to a technology centered economy. I have to wonder who is going to buy all the goods and services that fuel this economy when people don't have jobs to pay for things? Just saying.”

AI Pledge for Humanity quote graphic. On a cream background, text reads: “We need UBI if we have any chance of having a smooth transition from a labor centered economy to a technology centered economy. I have to wonder who is going to buy all the goods and services that fuel this economy when people don't have jobs to pay for things? Just saying.” At right, a person stands on a reflective beach facing a large black letter A. Footer reads: “Sign & share your own — aipledgeforhumanity.org.”

Scott Santens@scottsantens· Jul 1

Here's my summary of top UBI-related news developments in June for the @itsafoundation.bsky.social newsletter. Subscribe for free to get this every month in your inbox. itsanewsletter.beehiiv.com/p/itsa-newsl...

South Korea's Prime Minister Proposes Funding a Basic Income With the Country's Al and Semiconductor Wealth

Iowa's Basic Income Pilot Raised Hope in a Way No Other U.S. Pilot Has

A New Zealand Party Running on a $20,000 Basic Income Surges to the Edge of Parliament

White House Officials Are Weighing Government Equity in Al Companies to Pay Households a Dividend

Anthropic Becomes the Second Major Al Lab to Name Basic Income as an Answer to Al Job Loss

Al Giants Put $500M Behind Worker Retraining That Mostly Fails - and the Org is Headed by a UBI Hater

After the DOGE Layoffs, a Baltimore Man Built a Working Basic Income With His Neighbors

Scott Santens@scottsantens· Jun 25

For example, they think that instead of everyone benefiting directly from AI with a cash dividend as owners of tech stocks already are, why not have "service years?"

Scott Santens@scottsantens· Jun 25

A cherry on top is the part about them wanting to pursue a state by state strategy to find policies that work. We've tested out basic income almost 200 times all across the US and it works extremely well. So what exactly is their definition of "works?" Perhaps it's what keeps workers subservient?

Scott Santens@scottsantens· Jun 25

"Ms. Raimondo and her colleagues are not fans of a universal basic income, an idea that has gained popularity in Silicon Valley as an answer to job disruption. They emphasize that work provides more than just wages, and plan to focus on helping people find pathways to new jobs." archive.ph/sk4ag

Scott Santens@scottsantens· Jun 23

"If AI is going to have a positive effect on society, we have to have a UBI to secure us through job disruptions. This is our data and we deserve a significant share!” From a signer of the pledge at aipledgeforhumanity.org

Beige gradient quote card for “The AI Pledge for Humanity,” labeled “From a signer of the pledge.” The card reads: “In support of the pledge: If AI is going to have a positive effect on society, we have to have a UBI to secure us through job disruptions. This is our data and we deserve a significant share!” Footer text says “Sign & share your own” and “aipledgeforhumanity.org.”

Scott Santens@scottsantens· Jun 23

"It’s time for Democrats to take on the class war that’s being waged by the nation’s oligarchy against most Americans by becoming class warriors themselves," says @rbreich.bsky.social in calling for bold changes like universal basic income and taxing great wealth. open.substack.com/pub/robertre...

Scott Santens@scottsantens· Jun 22

Newly revised study of AI's impact on productivity estimates that in the US, it's already contributing about $900 billion a year in higher productivity. That's about $234/mo per person. Where's our dividend check? I'll take direct deposit. papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

Measuring the Impact of AI on Productivity: Cross-Sectoral Evidence from the U.S. and Eighteen Other Economies Post-ChatGPT

76 Pages Posted: 28 Apr 2026 Last revised: 5 Jun 2026
Benjamin Verschuere

Liminal Capital
Angus Cameron

Liminal Capital

Date Written: April 27, 2026
Abstract

We provide the first cross-country sectoral measurement of artificial intelligence’s contri- bution to trend productivity growth globally, identified from observed sectoral outcomes through 2025Q4 rather than from forecasts of diffusion. Using a panel difference-in- differences specification with AI exposure measured by the Workflow Completeness construct (C∗) of Verschuere and Cameron (2026a), we estimate that AI is contribut- ing approximately $1.26 trillion per year across the United States, the EU 12, and China combined at the end-of-2025 run-rate. The U.S. accounts for $878 billion (95 percent CI [$602B, $1,155B]) across five primary sectors covering roughly 54 percent of GDP, raising aggregate growth on this base to +5.0 percent per year against a +2.2 percent counterfactual. The EU 12 pooled panel contributes $138 billion (95 percent CI [$23B, $254B]) and China $240 billion (95 percent CI [$116B, $365B]). The result holds under the primary inference cascade (wild cluster bootstrap and permutation), falls short of significance only under its single most conservative bootstrap variant, and survives ten alternative-mechanism tests (eight conducted in this paper, two adopted from the companion papers).

Scott Santens@scottsantens· Jun 20

I definitely helped train AI models. Where's my cut? Just do UBI for all, k thx. intheweights.com

Scott Santens@scottsantens· Jun 20

First off, I am grateful to those who choose to read my Substack and become a paid subscriber. With that said, I have over 4,000 free subscribers, meaning that if this were my ONLY pay, I'd need about 60,000 more subscribers to not live under the poverty line. We need UBI. scottsantens.substack.com

Scott Santens@scottsantens· Jun 20

I am most definitely in the weights.

Scott Santens@scottsantens· Jun 18

"I think that this sort of commitment is the only way that AI will serve as a positive force for humanity. AI has the power to usher in an unprecedented age of abundance but without a commitment such as this, it almost certainly won't." From a signer of the pledge at aipledgeforhumanity.org for UBI

Quote card for The AI Pledge for Humanity featuring a signer’s reflection that says: "I've been concerned about the future of AI since around 2010, long before it became an issue of concern in our economy or popular culture, but at a point where some communities already foresaw the challenges and potential it might present. In the long run, I think that this sort of commitment is the only way that AI will serve as a positive force for humanity. AI has the power to usher in an unprecedented age of abundance, but without a commitment such as this, it almost certainly won't." On the right, a person stands on a reflective beach beside a large black letter A. Bottom text reads: “Sign & share your own — aipledgeforhumanity.org.”

Scott Santens@scottsantens· Jun 16

“This level of wealth concentration is not only unjust. It is unsustainable. It inevitably leads to conflicts, wars, revolutions, that bring a lot of human suffering and destroy the wealth that new technologies help create.” Sign the pledge and share your own reason why at aipledgeforhumanity.org

Quote card for The AI Pledge for Humanity. Text reads, “This level of wealth concentration is not only unjust. It is unsustainable. It inevitably leads to conflicts, wars, revolutions, that bring a lot of human suffering and destroy the wealth that new technologies help create.” At right, a person stands beside a large letter A reflected on a calm shoreline.

Scott Santens@scottsantens· Jun 10

More people now support UBI than oppose it except for: Whites, 65+, college+, and Trump voters. 64% of Harris voters and 57% of nonvoters support UBI. Heads up to you nonvoters, you're going to need to start voting if you want UBI. Same goes for the 58% of those ages 30-44 and the 55% of ages 18-29.

Poll crosstab for question 40: “Would you support or oppose the U.S. federal government providing a universal basic income of about $1,500 a month ($18,000 a year) for all adult citizens, whether or not they work?” Overall, 48% support it, including 27% strongly and 21% somewhat; 42% oppose it, including 13% somewhat and 29% strongly; 11% are not sure. Support is highest among Black respondents at 65%, Harris voters at 63%, adults ages 30–44 at 58%, and nonvoters at 57%. Opposition is highest among Trump voters at 62%, adults 65+ at 58%, White respondents at 48%, and college graduates at 49%. The total unweighted sample size is 3,008.

Scott Santens@scottsantens· Jun 10

“In a world where the wealth gap is widening and the political environment is infected with corruption, there is a very real fear of what our world will look like with the benefits of AI solely in the hands of the powerful. An AI dividend, or UBI, may be our only hope at prosperity for the many...”

Quote graphic for The AI Pledge for Humanity. Text reads: “In a world where the wealth gap is widening and the political environment is infected with corruption, there is a very real fear of what our world will look like with the benefits of AI solely in the hands of the powerful. An AI dividend, or UBI, may be our only hope at prosperity for the many and not just the few.” — From a signer of the pledge. At right, a person stands on a reflective shoreline near a large black letter A. Bottom text reads: “Sign & share your own — AIPledgeForHumanity.org.”

Scott Santens@scottsantens· Jun 8

"We need a maximum wealth limit; we need a minimum wealth floor. And we need the universal basic income to distribute this wealth among us all." — From a signer of the pledge at aipledgeforhumanity.org

Promotional graphic for The AI Pledge for Humanity. On the left, a cream-colored text panel reads: “We need a maximum wealth limit; we need a minimum wealth floor. And we need the universal basic income to distribute this wealth among us all. — From a signer of the pledge.” At the bottom it says: “Sign & share your own — aipledgeforhumanity.org.” On the right, a lone person stands on a reflective shoreline near a large black letter A under a soft, hazy sky.

Scott Santens@scottsantens· Jun 5

“We are already past the point where our choice is between brutal despotism, annihilation, and cooperative thriving; and every possible future in the latter category requires UBI." From a signer of the AI Pledge for Humanity. Sign the pledge and share why you're signing at aipledgeforhumanity.org

Promotional graphic for The AI Pledge for Humanity. On the left, a cream-colored text panel reads: “We are already past the point where our choice is between brutal despotism, annihilation, and cooperative thriving; and every possible future in the latter category requires UBI. — From a signer of the pledge.” At the bottom it says: “Sign & share your own — aipledgeforhumanity.org.” On the right, a lone person stands on a reflective shoreline near a large black letter A under a soft, hazy sky.

Scott Santens@scottsantens· Jun 4

“With the current assimilation of the data of our entire global civilization now used to birth and train an emerging artificial workforce it is time we start taking a good look at how resources could start to flow back to fund a guaranteed solid economic floor for everyone." aipledgeforhumanity.org

Promotional graphic for The AI Pledge for Humanity. On the left, a cream-colored text panel reads: “As so many of the the commons were seized and fenced off long ago, and with the current assimilation of the data of our entire global civilization now used to birth and train an emerging artificial workforce (unlike anything previously encountered by humanity), it is time we start taking a good look at how resources could start to flow back to fund a guaranteed solid economic floor for everyone. — From a signer of the pledge.” At the bottom it says: “Sign & share your own — aipledgeforhumanity.org.” On the right, a lone person stands on a reflective shoreline near a large black letter A under a soft, hazy sky.

Scott Santens@scottsantens· Jun 2

“This could just be the most important policy position on the landscape. Elevating people by raising the floor on resources makes everything else we want to achieve possible, individually and collectively." From a signer of the aipledgeforhumanity.org. Sign in support of UBI and share your reason.

Promotional graphic for The AI Pledge for Humanity. On the left, a cream-colored text panel reads: “This could just be the most important policy position on the landscape. Elevating people by raising the floor on resources makes everything else we want to achieve possible, individually and collectively. It’s proven to lower crime, increase risk taking, raise creativity, promote pro-social behaviors even raise IQ. — From a signer of the pledge.” At the bottom it says: “Sign & share your own — aipledgeforhumanity.org.” On the right, a lone person stands on a reflective shoreline near a large black letter A under a soft, hazy sky.

Scott Santens@scottsantens· Jun 2

My reply to @rbreich.bsky.social's Office Hours substack today that includes a poll with UBI as an option. substack.com/@scottsanten...

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Universal basic income is an extremely important policy to fight for and win. It's not the only thing we need to do -- for example we also need universal healthcare and 4-day weeks but UBI should be seen as a floor below which no one is allowed to fall that rises over time as a productivity dividend so that as GDP grows, everyone is better off.

One very important thing it would do is provide everyone the power to say no, which translates to strike power and bargaining power, and thus better wages for jobs that can't be automated. It would provide more freedom of choice so that people can choose the work that's best for them, including unpaid care work and also including starting their own new jobs as entrepreneurs. UBI is far more than money. It is a foundation to build lives on.

I've written about UBI since 2013 and

have been pushing for people to

organize and mobilize around getting it

implemented before Al began to

displace people from jobs, but here we

are. I'm now trying harder than ever to

get the wheels turning via something I'm

calling the Al Pledge for Humanity. You

can find it at aipledgeforhumanity.org.

Current signers of the pledge already include Andrew Yang, Vernon Smith (Nobel-prize winning economist), Dustin Moskovitz (co-founder of Facebook), Andrew Stern (former president of the SEIU), and many other names you would recognize. It would mean a lot to add Robert Reich to the list of names in support of UBI.

Scott Santens@scottsantens· May 31

Thanks for writing it! I've tweeted about it before but never wrote a full article.

Scott Santens@scottsantens· May 29

Looking forward to reading @ericries.bsky.social's new book Incorruptible, (especially after eating the chocolate bar that came with it 😋). Eric has written before about how even a modest UBI could pay huge dividends and likely increase startup formation by reducing the risks inherent in failure.

Scott Santens@scottsantens· May 29

This month’s @itsafoundation.bsky.social newsletter is packed with the growing case for UBI in the AI age: AI worker disruption, California’s new AI order, South Korea’s rural basic income pilot, Rx Kids reducing child welfare investigations, and more. itsanewsletter.beehiiv.com/p/itsa-found...

Here's the Latest and Biggest UBI-Related News:

‣ Newsom’s New AI Order Opens the Door to UBI via Shared AI Gains

‣ National Association of Women and the Law Backs Basic Income in Canada

‣ Study Links Rx Kids to a 32% Drop in Flint Infant Maltreatment Investigations

‣ NY Basic Income Study Finds $1,000 a Month Bought Time for Meaningful Work

‣ Business Insider Profiles AI-Displaced Worker Helped by Basic Income

‣ South Korea’s Deputy Prime Minister Says AI Wealth Must Benefit the Public

‣ Chris Rabb Wins PA-03 Democratic Primary After Running on Platform With UBI

‣ South Korea’s Rural Basic Income Pilot for 300,000+ People Shows Early Local Gains

Scott Santens@scottsantens· May 28

“Realizing the promise of this pledge is what inoculates our civilization from economic and ecological collapse. Ushering in an era of abundance within the means of our planet where all of humanity is free to pursue life, liberty, happiness, and meaning." —From a signer of the AI Pledge for Humanity