Mariana Mazzucato

Professor in the Economics of Innovation and Public Value; Founding Director, UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose, University College London

Search every verified Mariana Mazzucato interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. Mariana Mazzucato, professor in the Economics of Innovation and Public Value and founding director of the UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose, appeared on the Odd Lots podcast in May ̈ 2026, recorded at the Bloomberg CityLab conference in Madrid. In the conversation, she discussed her concept of the "mission economy" and her views on state capacity, particularly regarding artificial intelligence. She argued that government investment historically played a leading role in developing technologies such as AI, including through agencies like DARPA, and that the resulting rewards have largely been privatized by large companies, which she described as economic rents rather than profits. She also expressed concern that top researchers are leaving public universities and institutions for private AI firms, which she said makes it harder to govern technological development for public benefit. She stated that governments, at least democratically elected ones, should ensure technological changes benefit people and planet, but that this requires rebuilding state capacity and appropriate regulation. She also noted that she was in Madrid meeting with Spain's Prime Minister and Minister for the Economy, Carlos Cuerpo, regarding a newly established body called the Global Council for a Common Good Economy.