Agentic Economy Glossary
What is Doom Loop?
Economic risk: agents replace workers → wages collapse → demand collapses → nothing to sell.
Last updated · Curated by Rene Dechamps Otamendi
In depth
The doom loop is the macroeconomic risk of Category B automation. As agents replace white-collar workers, unemployment rises and wages fall. With lower wages, consumer demand collapses. Merchants have fewer customers, so demand for agent services (and everything else) crashes. The economy stagnates. Avoiding this requires policy: retraining, UBI, or taxing agent productivity to fund social safety nets. It's not inevitable, but it's a real risk.
Why it matters
- Worker displacement
- Wage collapse
- Demand destruction
- Economic stagnation
- Policy mitigation
Related terms
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