Is there such thing as a 'free lunch?'

In an economic theory class the other day we debated whether there was actually a 'free lunch' or not. Here is an article that discusses the unearned riches or possibility of a free lunch.

https://fee.org/articles/unearned-riches/

I took the position of there actually was a free lunch, somewhere. The reasoning behind kind of makes sense, but we'll see what you guys think. Essentially, if we believe that the market/economy/wealth is not a zero sum game and the pie isn't fixed, then there must be a free lunch somewhere in there if there is more than enough for everyone. The example we used was: say someone someone quit their job to invent a new type of computer, his salary was 250k and he spent 100k in hardware expenses etc.. That makes his total cost including opportunity cost 350k. Then assume this computer revolutionizes computation everywhere and generates billions of dollars. Is all of the money and 'wealth/innovation' he created, over the 350k, considered unearned 'free' riches, because now we get to utilize this innovation, at a small cost relative to the actual worth of the innovation.

Pretty interesting topic I figured I'd bring it here and see what you guys thought!

1 Comments
 

Eius ducimus ut voluptas quos placeat alias voluptatem. Placeat quia similique eius ducimus soluta.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.3%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (44) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (79) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
bolo up's picture
bolo up
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”