Fastcompany iconFastcompanySep 24, 2026

Apocalypse or golden opportunity? Why the AI freakout might be useful

Without downplaying legitimate concerns about the havoc that new technologies such as AI can cause, history offers some interesting analogies. Historically, new technologies that dramatically increased the speed, scale, or autonomy of human capability have triggered intense anxieties.

Apocalypse or golden opportunity? Why the AI freakout might be useful

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Without downplaying legitimate concerns about the havoc that new technologies such as AI can cause, history offers some interesting analogies.

Historically, new technologies that dramatically increased the speed, scale, or autonomy of human capability have triggered intense anxieties.

Disruptive technologies such as AI, in the Scott Anthony sense, make what was once difficult or that required expertise or skill easy.

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Without downplaying legitimate concerns about the havoc that new technologies such as AI can cause, history offers some interesting analogies. Historically, new technologies that dramatically increased the speed, scale, or autonomy of human capability have triggered intense anxieties. Disruptive technologies such as AI, in the Scott Anthony sense, make what was once difficult or that required expertise or skill easy.

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As a consequence, they make those same things...

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