AI Firms Sold Their Souls to Steal Yours

A new story with an old plot

Today, I’m republishing an article that I originally published in June 2024. I’d say it’s more relevant now than it was back then (some links you will find outdated, but the overall thesis is timely, even prescient if I say so myself). The theme is how surveillance and distraction together are more than the sum of the parts; how the AI industry has made it clear that both Orwell and Huxley were right. It’s far from my best work (I’m slightly embarrassed by resurfacing it!), but sometimes good prose and a polished style are less important than pressing content. Try to enjoy it. (If you guys like this one and don’t think it’s repetitive, given how much has been written about the topic, I will consider rewriting it from scratch with updated arguments and information.)

I. Sins and surveillance

Did you know you can map how artificial intelligence companies do things into the seven deadly sins? Look:

1. Pride: “No one but us knows how to bring prosperity and abundance to the world. We’ll do that with a weapon of mass distraction and control.”
2. Greed: “Let me tell you a tale about machine superintelligence while revenue doubles and profits soar with this thing that pollutes the commons.”