AI Phobia Is Just Fear That ‘Easier’ Equals ‘Cheating’

I believe there are two plausible scenarios for the future of knowledge work. There’s one in which as machines become more human-like in their capabilities, we paradoxically become more machine-like in our pursuit of productivity, focused on efficiency and keeping busy above all else. But there’s another where we lean into ways of working that are ... See more

Just as factory owners of the 19th century dismissed the skills of their workers in favor of profit and productivity, so do the tech leaders of today dismiss human craft in favor of what they believe is “good enough” productivity. It’s telling that in the development of AI, tech companies often use the term “ median human ” to describe the aspirati... See more

AI now promises results without the reckoning, but frictionless creation leads to weightless rewards. No one dreams of merely pushing a button to generate their magnum opus. The struggle is what makes it count, what gives it weight.1

We worry AI will replace writers. But have you seen most of what’s online? Half the internet is engagement farmers on LinkedIn selling you 5 steps to 10x your productivity by 6am.

You can see this mindset has infected everything:

• We join Twitter for the love of conversation—come out obsessed with likes.


• We pursue research for discovery—then get trapp

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