The Idea of Growth: How Economists Explained Prosperity, Stagnation, and Change is a book that ChatGPT and I began in the summer of 2026. As a macroeconomist, I wanted a systematic history of growth thought with a scope and depth I had not found in a single volume. The first edition was completed on 1 October 2026.

The book traces economic thinking about growth from Adam Smith and classical political economy to selected contemporary frontiers. Chronology provides its structure, while recurring problems connect successive theories and debates. Each section includes a Bibliographic Essay distinguishing original arguments from later interpretations and formalizations. Models, evidence, and illustrations connect the development of theory with the people, institutions, and controversies that shaped it.

ChatGPT undertook most of the source gathering, synthesis, drafting, figure and table preparation, and typesetting. I shaped the book’s architecture, substantive balance, and design, reviewed drafts, corrected errors, and made the final editorial decisions. The project is also an experiment in sustained human–AI authorship.

The manuscript is freely available online. I plan to revise it gradually through occasional, targeted updates to language, formatting, and content. Readers’ corrections, questions, and suggestions are welcome.

Below I share the project rules and editorial checklist, together with a retrospective written by ChatGPT-6 Astra Max after the completion of the first edition. It reflects on the project’s development and the lessons it offers for others undertaking a book with AI.

Project Rules

Editorial Checklist

A ChatGPT Restrospective