I appreciate the way this essay redirects focus from the absorbing questions of AI. Maybe there's a weird consolation in obsessing about AI. It's something that few of us can do anything about. But these things you've raised, they're political and cultural issues that we CAN speak to. And we should. Thanks, Laetitia.
This is a fascinating analysis. I actually don't think you can separate these things from AI. In reality our future will be shaped by a combination of powerful changes, not by technology alone. We need strong institutions, good culture and the ability to innovate and grow to meet the challenge.
I'm a little lost on your return-to-office mandates causality logic here. The term didn't exist until about three years ago and fertility rates have only declined in the meantime.
Not to be unsympathetic, but this sense that the employment world suddenly owes you something that didn't exist a few years ago, introduced as a pandemic cope, echoes that old Louie CK bit about the speed of airplane WiFi entitlement: https://youtu.be/PdFB7q89_3U?t=118
It reads more like a smokescreen for the bigger and more insidious trend: that child care in America has become exorbitantly expensive and impossible to find.
As thought-provoking as ever. Has any research yet been carried out on the influencer/content creator workforce? Do they even show up in statistics? My understanding is that, while platforms take a cut, earnings for creators can be substantial, allowing these (sometimes short-term) millionaires to rent or buy in prime city locations, further skewing the urban housing market.
I appreciate the way this essay redirects focus from the absorbing questions of AI. Maybe there's a weird consolation in obsessing about AI. It's something that few of us can do anything about. But these things you've raised, they're political and cultural issues that we CAN speak to. And we should. Thanks, Laetitia.
This is a fascinating analysis. I actually don't think you can separate these things from AI. In reality our future will be shaped by a combination of powerful changes, not by technology alone. We need strong institutions, good culture and the ability to innovate and grow to meet the challenge.
I'm a little lost on your return-to-office mandates causality logic here. The term didn't exist until about three years ago and fertility rates have only declined in the meantime.
Not to be unsympathetic, but this sense that the employment world suddenly owes you something that didn't exist a few years ago, introduced as a pandemic cope, echoes that old Louie CK bit about the speed of airplane WiFi entitlement: https://youtu.be/PdFB7q89_3U?t=118
The RTO finger-pointing angle smells of reactionary sour grapes, especially when its impact has been rather small to date (https://wolfstreet.com/2025/02/10/there-hasnt-been-much-if-any-reduction-in-wfh-in-over-2-years-despite-all-the-hype-about-rto/).
It reads more like a smokescreen for the bigger and more insidious trend: that child care in America has become exorbitantly expensive and impossible to find.
RTO is just the last straw. I absolutely believe that the main culprit is the prohibitive cost of child care (and insufficient access to child care)!
As thought-provoking as ever. Has any research yet been carried out on the influencer/content creator workforce? Do they even show up in statistics? My understanding is that, while platforms take a cut, earnings for creators can be substantial, allowing these (sometimes short-term) millionaires to rent or buy in prime city locations, further skewing the urban housing market.