The intersection of technology, immigration, and economics is currently reshaping several facets of American society, according to recent reports. While the AI boom sparks both investment opportunities and concerns about productivity, a crackdown on immigration is fundamentally altering the nation's labor supply, and a billionaire has blocked the sale of a warehouse for potential use as an ICE detention center.
The AI growth story has been tempered by a widespread selloff in software stocks, with some analysts calling it the "SaaSpocalypse." Software companies have lost around $2 trillion in value over the past year, according to JPMorgan analysts. However, some executives and market veterans see this as a "generational" moment to buy into the next phase of the AI boom, as reported by Fortune.
Simultaneously, a sweeping crackdown on immigration during a potential second term for Donald Trump, characterized by elevated deportations and strict new visa bans, has precipitated an 80% collapse in net immigration to the U.S., according to a new analysis by Goldman Sachs released on February 16. The report warned that this dramatic contraction in the flow of foreign-born workers is fundamentally altering the nation's labor supply and lowering the threshold for job growth needed to maintain economic stability. Net immigration, which averaged approximately 1 million people per year during the 2010s, fell to 500,000 in 2025 and is projected to plummet further.
Adding to the complexities, billionaire Edward Roski Jr. blocked the sale of a 1-million-square-foot facility owned by his company, Majestic Realty, after the Department of Homeland Security approached them about using it as a potential ICE detention center. The facility could have held up to 9,500 beds. Roski confirmed the approach but stated that his company would not enter into any such deal.
The AI boom is also raising questions about productivity. Thousands of CEOs admitted AI had no impact on employment or productivity, leading economists to resurrect a paradox from 40 years ago. In 1987, economist and Nobel laureate Robert Solow observed that the advent of new technologies like transistors and microprocessors did not result in the expected surge in productivity. Instead, productivity growth slowed.
The current situation echoes the early industrial revolutions, where new technologies reshaped the world. As Fortune noted, "Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it," quoting George Santayana. The AI boom is creating a situation where corporate profits are capturing extra productivity, while salaries may not reflect the gains.
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