In this commencement speech, economist Tyler Cowen celebrates the graduating class, emphasizing the unprecedented level of opportunity available to their generation and warning that rapid, AI‑driven change will make careers and life paths far less predictable than in the past. He argues that a healthy fear of this transformation signals awareness. Cowen then shifts to a personal narrative about his experiences in Guatemala over the past twelve years, noting the country’s remarkable post‑pandemic economic growth of about 4% annually—outpacing most of Central and Latin America and even the United States and China. He credits this dynamism to the unique elite and leadership cultivated by Universidad Francisco Marroquín, whose commitment to liberty and ideas has helped propel the nation’s development. Cowen concludes by honoring the university’s community, expressing optimism for the future, and thanking the audience for the honor.
Chapters
One thing that strikes me, seeing you all there, It's just the incredible level of opportunity you have, I think like no other generation before you. But I'm also here to tell you it's going to be a little bit scary and intimidating. So I think in the next 30 or 40 years, the world will change more and change more quickly than say what I grew up with. When I thought, say when I was 15 years old, what would my job be like being a professor? And how is it like now? It's actually not that different. When my daughter was 12, I talked to her about careers. Now she's 35. What she and I talked about, you know, it's really not that different now. But we're on the verge with artificial intelligence of all of our jobs being different. We're likely to be wealthier and wiser, but it won't be possible to set out a fixed course of what we should do and exactly what kind of person we should be. I sometimes tell people that if you're not a little scared by this, I don't actually trust that you're awake. But that said, I think we are truly on this revolutionary era in the best sense of the term. I recall the last time I was in Guatemala City 12 years ago, It was just much poorer, less interesting than it is today. And back then I went around, I gave some talks, I was on some radio shows, and I kept on saying, "I feel something so dynamic here." No one was persuaded by me. You know, I'm this outsider, what do I know about Guatemala? Of course, I'm from the United States. I had this very positive feeling. Again, everyone I spoke to was just pessimistic. It was the world was on the verge of ending. But we fast forward 12 years later, since end of the pandemic, Guatemala has been growing about 4% a year in terms of GDP. If you look around Central America, Latin America, very few countries match that. Sometimes Panama does better. The United States doesn't match that. Right now, China isn't matching that. So you're catching up on pretty much the whole world. I mean, that's really something to be proud of and something very special. So I, you know, I just got here again today, uh, but I hope things are more optimistic because you've all earned it. I think what's also special here, and I cannot stress how unique this is, is just the quality of a part of your elite. And I mean the elite and the leaders who stand behind Francisco Marroquín. I've been to all the other Central American, actually Latin American countries. Nowhere else in Central America is there anything remotely like this. In the United States, now we talk a lot about El Salvador, Bukele, it's all very complicated. But we should be talking about Guatemala. You're growing much more rapidly than they are. I went to El Salvador in August. I wanted to see what was going on. I spoke to a lot of people. I go, "What do you think of El Salvador?" They wanted to talk about Guatemala. They said, "Well, it's not growing as fast as Guatemala. You know, we wish we had their economy." That's pretty remarkable. So, you know, there are many factors behind that. I don't pretend to understand them all. But really a big one is this university, the leadership behind it, the leadership you've produced. And you don't do that without dedicated people who adhere to ideas of liberty and promote them and really devote their lives to that. So just as an outsider, not being an expert in Guatemala, yes, I'm here to celebrate with you, but also to tell you both what a special time this is. And what a special place this is. So I'm very, very honored to be here again, and I also look forward to the next time I see you all. Thank you again for this incredible honor. Good night.
