Is RAISE-UP proposing socialism?

 

RAISE-UP isn’t about government owning industries or centrally planning the economy (classic socialism). It’s about steering a market economy so AI is aimed at people-centered outcomes—more good jobs and lower costs for essentials—rather than just maximizing labor-replacing profits.

 

What RAISE-UP is: pro-innovation, pro-enterprise rules and incentives that make “augment people” the winning business strategy. Think: transparency about job impacts; tax credits, prizes, and procurement that reward firms for creating and upgrading jobs; guardrails on unsafe/unchecked autonomy; open competition (interoperability, antitrust where needed); and community-led standards (faith, labor, civic groups) for what “benefits everyone” means. Markets still allocate and entrepreneurs still build—just with clear goals and accountability.

 

What it isn’t: not state ownership, not banning AI, not freezing prices, and not one-size-fits-all central planning. Companies compete; consumers choose; investors invest—but public incentives stop subsidizing job elimination and start rewarding shared prosperity.

 

What it borrows: RAISE-UP does overlap with social-democratic ideas (e.g., investing to make healthcare/education/housing more affordable) and with long-standing American traditions (antitrust, safety standards, GI-Bill-style upskilling, rural electrification–style infrastructure). Call it a people-first, mixed-economy approach.