By David Young-
Professor Philippe Aghion from the Department of Economics and the Centre for Economic Performance (CEP) at LSE has today (13 October) been awarded the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences.
Professor Aghion was awarded the prize jointly with Joel Mokyr from Northwestern University and Peter Howitt from Brown University “for having explained innovation-driven economic growth”.
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Professor Philippe Aghion’s research focuses on the economics of growth. He is also based at the College de France and INSEAD,
With Peter Howitt, he studied the mechanisms behind sustained growth. In an article from 1992, they constructed a mathematical model for what is called creative destruction: when a new and better product enters the market, the companies selling the older products lose out. The innovation represents something new and is thus creative. However, it is also destructive, as the company whose technology becomes passé is outcompeted.
In March 2020, he shared the BBVA “Frontier of Knowledge Award” with Peter Howitt for “developing an economic growth theory based on the innovation that emerges from the process of creative destruction.”
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Commenting, Professor Larry Kramer, President and Vice Chancellor of the London School of Economics and Political Science said: “With the whole LSE community, I’m absolutely thrilled to congratulate Philippe Aghion on winning the 2025 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences.
Professor Aghion’s groundbreaking work on innovation-driven growth has profoundly shaped our understanding of how economies evolve and thrive. This award represents much deserved recognition of Professor Aghion’s brilliant scholarship and the lasting impact his ideas have had on economic policy and thought around the world.”
Professor Ronny Razin, Head of the Department of Economics at the London School of Economics and Political Science said: “Professor Aghion’s pioneering work on innovation, growth, and the dynamics of capitalism has transformed modern economic thinking and profoundly influenced both academic research and public policy.
“His scholarship has deepened our understanding of how innovation drives productivity and how institutions and policy frameworks shape the process of creative destruction.
“We are immensely proud to count Professor Aghion among our colleagues. His presence enriches our research community and inspires our students and faculty alike. This recognition underscores LSE’s long tradition of world-leading research and our enduring commitment to understanding and improving the world through the study of economics.
“On behalf of all colleagues in the LSE Department of Economics, I extend our warmest congratulations to Philippe on this richly deserved honour.”
His research focuses on the economics of growth. With Peter Howitt, he pioneered the so-called Schumpeterian Growth paradigm which was subsequently used to analyze the design of growth policies and the role of the state in the growth process.
Much of this work is summarized in their joint book Endogenous Growth Theory (MIT Press, 1998) and The Economics of Growth (MIT Press, 2009), in his book with Rachel Griffith on Competition and Growth (MIT Press, 2006), and in his survey “What Do We Learn from Schumpeterian Growth Theory” (joint with U. Akcigit and P. Howitt).
In 2001, Philippe Aghion received the Yrjo Jahnsson Award of the best European economist under age 45, in 2009 he received the John Von Neumann Award, and in March 2020 he shared the BBVA “Frontier of Knowledge Award” with Peter Howitt for “developing an economic growth theory based on the innovation that emerges from the process of creative destruction”.
More recently Philippe Aghion produced a new book entitled The Power of Creative destruction (Odile Jacob, Harvard University Press) joint with C. Antonin et S. Bunel. While providing a reappraisal of the foundations of economic success and a blueprint for change, The Power of Creative Destruction also shows that a fair and prosperous future is ultimately ours to make.
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