I’ve been mulling over the interaction among commercial users of the Internet, social media, AI, data centers, and end users for some time now.
The graphic above summarizes those thoughts. Comments appreciated.
I’ve been mulling over the interaction among commercial users of the Internet, social media, AI, data centers, and end users for some time now.
The graphic above summarizes those thoughts. Comments appreciated.
Initially, abundant computing power might be democratizing, but it will quickly be walled off by a few big players. Remember how the internet used to be. Then, a few big players realized the users were the product, and a few dopamine hits was all it took to fleece them.
I am mixed over data centers. These companies are not honest players, and they do not want to be honest. Frankly, it seems as if each is determined to be more evil than the next. They will likely go down as the 21st Century’s Robber Barons.
Under “Who benefits most?,” the local dynamic in my county was that the labor unions played an important role in getting county approval, touting the construction jobs and permanent ones.
Also, the County approval emphasized the added property tax revenue. Interestingly, the location chosen was in the corner of the county where many of those most impacted were on the other side of the county line.
I wonder if the dynamics shift a bit in areas without notable unions or where the approval authority gets all of the tax benefits.
ok, good graphic. Remember when UUCP was supposed to democratize the discussions on usenet by allowing any one with a phone line and ability to follow instructions to connect and participate? We’ve been here before, entropy happens.
As an aside, wonder how many of these will be cranking out bit coin either on the side or full bore.
The top progression is pretty obvious. The other lines have some issues. Who benefits the most? The companies making billions fromAI. Why do people oppose data centers? In some cases communities would clearly be better off having a data center. In some places ignorance and conspiracy theory drive opposition. However, some of the legitimate concerns listed are real plus it ignores that there are billions of dollars going into these centers so these big companies with deep pockets have sometimes engaged in pretty unethical behaviors and have generally avoided transparency in efforts to get approval.
Steve