Eric Schmidt signed the “We Must Act Now” statement on AI, according to a July 14, 2026 report in The Independent that names him among the document’s public signatories.
The statement, hosted at wemustactnow.ai and organized by Stanford-affiliated researchers, urges policymakers and firms to prepare for AI’s economic effects. The Stanford digital economy lab published the full text and said the list of signatories appears on the statement’s website.
Independent reporting identified eric schmidt as a signatory on July 14, 2026. Independent’s piece lists local details about Schmidt and places his signature among a larger group of academics and industry figures.
Associated Press reporting confirmed the scale of the campaign: “the letter has so far been signed by more than 200 economists and AI researchers, including 16 winners of a Nobel Prize,” citing the Stanford organisers’ release.
Eric Schmidt’s name appears on the public signatory list alongside economists, researchers and executives; Stanford’s announcement noted the statement was coordinated by Erik Brynjolfsson, Ajay Agrawal, Anton Korinek and Tom Cunningham.
Why it matters: the signatories say AI could transform the economy and labour markets rapidly, and the statement calls for immediate attention from policymakers and employers, a point emphasized in the Stanford write-up and in wider coverage.
The article links to the statement and the public signatory list rather than to any private correspondence from signers; coverage so far reports the signing as a public endorsement rather than an organizational role for Schmidt.
Sources
- The Independent — identified Eric Schmidt as a signatory and reported the July 14, 2026 publication about his endorsement.
- Associated Press — reported the statement “has so far been signed by more than 200 economists and AI researchers, including 16 winners of a Nobel Prize.”
- Stanford Digital Economy Lab — hosted the statement and published the full text and the initial list of organizers and signatories.
