MIT disavows doctoral student paper on AI's productivity benefits | TechCrunch
May 17, 2025 - techcrunch.com
MIT has announced the withdrawal of a high-profile paper on the impact of artificial intelligence on productivity in a materials science lab, citing concerns about the integrity of the research. The paper, authored by a doctoral student in MIT's economics program, claimed that an AI tool increased material discoveries and patent filings but decreased researchers' job satisfaction. Despite praise from economists Daron Acemoglu and David Autor, who initially supported the paper, they have since expressed doubts about the data's reliability and the research's validity. An internal review was prompted by concerns raised by a computer scientist, leading to the decision to withdraw the paper from public discourse.
The paper's author, identified as Aidan Toner-Rodgers, is no longer affiliated with MIT. The university has requested the paper's withdrawal from The Quarterly Journal of Economics and the preprint site arXiv, although only the author can formally request the latter's removal. The controversy highlights issues of data integrity and research validity in the field of AI and scientific discovery.
Key takeaways:
MIT has called for the withdrawal of a high-profile paper on AI's impact on productivity in a materials science lab due to concerns about its integrity.
The paper, authored by a doctoral student, claimed AI tools increased discoveries and patent filings but decreased researcher satisfaction.
MIT economists Daron Acemoglu and David Autor, who initially praised the paper, now doubt its data and research validity.
The author, Aidan Toner-Rodgers, is no longer at MIT, and the paper's withdrawal from journals and preprint sites has been requested.
