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What’s really sad is seeing people decry the fact that technological improvements lead to social change. Yes, they do, of course. But from radio to TV to the w

What’s really sad is seeing people decry the fact that technological improvements lead to social change. Yes, they do, of course. But from radio to TV to the word processor, technology has made life better, people more productive, and the world a better place [1]. Of course there are exceptions. Ask typists who were laid off how they feel about word processors, or ask lathe operators how they feel about CNC. The difference here seems to be people working in tech having the epiphany that they are not immune to the effects. The same programmers who wrote word processors and found it easy to dismiss the eradication of the typist role are suddenly very concerned about automation of programming. It’s not that bad. If you’re willing to learn continuously, you will adapt. If not… well, why should technologists be exempted from the impact of tech advancement? It’s very disingenuous to take a “oh, now that it affects us, it’s gone too far” position. 1. https://wdr2021.worldbank.org/ https://wdr2021.worldbank.org/

tananan 2y ago
You don't seem to be replying to the actual take in the podcast. They aren't worrying that it's going to take their job - it's a somewhat snarky lament that none of these transformative changes for the good are happening or are expected to happen, with a real possibility of the "enshitification" of a product that's only been there for two years. "AI" gets pushed into every nook and cranny of online experience - and to what end?
- piva00 2y ago
  One aspect of enshitification being forgotten are companies closing off their data (public APIs, login walls, etc.) because of AI scraping to train models.
- brookst 2y ago
  Yeah, I went a little tangential. I think I’m just triggered by the knee-jerk “it’s AI related so it must be bad / useless / fraudulent” vibe we see too often. ChatGPT is a great product; it is better now than it was 18, 12, or 6 months ago. Sure, they will seek revenue and profitability, but so what? There seems to be such a rush to dismiss AI. I don’t get it.

tananan 2y ago

You don't seem to be replying to the actual take in the podcast. They aren't worrying that it's going to take their job - it's a somewhat snarky lament that none of these transformative changes for the good are happening or are expected to happen, with a real possibility of the "enshitification" of a product that's only been there for two years. "AI" gets pushed into every nook and cranny of online experience - and to what end?

piva00 2y ago
One aspect of enshitification being forgotten are companies closing off their data (public APIs, login walls, etc.) because of AI scraping to train models.
brookst 2y ago
Yeah, I went a little tangential. I think I’m just triggered by the knee-jerk “it’s AI related so it must be bad / useless / fraudulent” vibe we see too often. ChatGPT is a great product; it is better now than it was 18, 12, or 6 months ago. Sure, they will seek revenue and profitability, but so what? There seems to be such a rush to dismiss AI. I don’t get it.