Upper Limit Score
Medium confidence
Key inputs
Experimental composite indicator. Not an official economic statistic. Full methodology →
How close are we to The Upper Limit?
A live dashboard tracking whether AI productivity is growing faster than the purchasing power needed to sustain a healthy economy.
Experimental model based on publicly available economic data. Not an official economic statistic.
Upper Limit Score
Medium confidence
Key inputs
Experimental composite indicator. Not an official economic statistic. Full methodology →
1960–2026 · Indexed · Nonfarm Business Sector
Gap: 2.4× faster
Productivity growing 2.4× faster than wages means workers create more value but keep less of it. This divergence is the central pressure metric in the Upper Limit model.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics · Inflation-adjusted · bls.gov ↗
What is The Upper Limit?
Every healthy economy depends on a cycle of income and spending. The Upper Limit asks: what happens if AI breaks that cycle?
The Traditional Cycle
The AI Question
What happens if productivity grows faster than purchasing power?
That threshold, where AI-driven gains stop translating into broad prosperity, is what we call The Upper Limit.
Where Are We Now?
The continuum below shows the current balance between AI productivity and household purchasing power.
Pressure
Current Position
Purchasing Power
Keeping pace
AI Productivity
Outpacing demand
Experimental model based on publicly available economic data
Key Indicators
The metrics that drive The Upper Limit Score.
50.5%
-1.2pp vs prior year
Labor Share of GDP
Percent of GDP
Compensation of employees as a percent of GDP. Measures how much national income goes to workers.
Why it matters
Declining labor share is the clearest signal that workers are losing ground relative to capital. It is the defining pressure in the Upper Limit model - when this falls, the economy is approaching its structural ceiling.
+273.2%
+2.8% vs prior year
Labor Productivity
Indexed growth
Output per hour worked, nonfarm business sector, since 1960. Year-over-year: +2.8%.
Why it matters
Productivity growth is the engine of wealth creation. When it outpaces wages, the surplus flows to capital rather than workers - this divergence is the core mechanism driving Upper Limit pressure.
+117.2%
+0.6% vs prior year
Real Compensation
Indexed growth
Inflation-adjusted compensation per hour since 1960. Year-over-year: +0.6%.
Why it matters
A widening gap between real compensation and productivity is the primary input to the Upper Limit Score. Workers producing more but earning proportionally less is the clearest sign of a system approaching its ceiling.
12.4%
+1.3pp vs prior year
Corporate Profit Share
Percent of GDP
After-tax corporate profits as a share of GDP.
Why it matters
When profit share rises as labor share falls, income is shifting from workers to capital owners. This redistribution is a core signal of the capital-labor imbalance that defines Upper Limit proximity.
Radical Transparency
Every calculation is documented. Every assumption is named. Every data source links to the original. If our methodology changes, we celebrate that, not hide it.