Jeffrey Wenger Named RAND's Distinguished Chair, AI, Workers, and the Economy

For Release

FridayAugust 21, 2026

Jeffrey Wenger, a senior economist at RAND, has been appointed Distinguished Chair, AI, Workers, and the Economy. In the two-year role, he will advance RAND's Education, Employment, and Infrastructure research agenda on artificial intelligence, including its effects on workers, labor markets, public finances, and the broader economy.

The position is supported by the Diller – von Furstenberg Family Foundation and the Lowy Family Foundation.

Wenger also directs the RAND Lowy Family Middle-Class Pathways Center and the Master of Policy Analysis Program at the RAND School of Public Policy. Additionally, he codirects the RAND von Furstenberg Family Budget Model, a suite of tools that helps decisionmakers understand federal spending and tax policy in unprecedented detail and evaluate ways to improve them.