Reading · The Ramblings of Buck Roy

The art of competing, I’d learn from the track, was the art of forgetting...You must forget your limits. You must forget your doubts, your pain, your past.
- Nike founder Phil Knight

Paywall helper bee: https://archive.vn/

Can Anthropic get its IPO out the door before its revenue model breaks down?

When will AI cross the Rubicon and start acting like the The Matrix? Or maybe I, Robot or The Terminator? Or even sweet Wall-E? All AI has to do is watch these movies to learn.

The economy and hiring are weak. In many areas, inflation is subsiding. Yet the interest rate on the 30-year bond is at the highest level since 2007 and may be going higher. It feels like bond investors are getting increasingly nervous about our exploding government debt. Well, we did just pass $40 TRILLION.

Don’t think the US government is the world’s only profligate spender. The same is happening in Europe, China, and really all over the world. The world can’t stop borrowing.

Because we’re in the early stages of AI, college students are at a total loss knowing which majors and degrees are worthwhile, and which are a waste. Maybe they should start with philosophy since AI will never be able to truly replicate the human emotional experience.

Looks like we are experiencing another Atlantic hurricane season dud. That damn climate change is messing up climate change.

Anthropic’s CEO believes that if AI can cure cancer, people would be less concerned about AI. Every reasonable person wants a cure to cancer, and here’s hoping we achieve it someday. If and when we do, there will be downstream effects. Per Google’s Gemini, annual cancer expenditures in the US are around $210B. There are about 1,500 cancer-specific medical centers across the country that employ between 450,000 and 600,000 workers. If AI cures cancer, what will replace the lost $210B of economic activity? What will become of the real estate of all those 1,500 cancer centers? What will be the replacement jobs for those 450,000 to 600,000 workers? Hopefully, as the AI overlords are also promising, AI will also suggest some handy solutions to the economic fallout of an otherwise positive development.

There’s a story in The Free Press about a movie where they cut all the sex scenes because Gen Z doesn’t like seeing actors in the nude. Who knew I was Gen Z?!

Inflation can appear to be beaten long before it actually is. History shows why the first wave may be only the beginning, and why today’s economy could still be vulnerable to another.

Look out for this Sunday’s Thinking Out Loud essay for more.

Did you miss last week’s essay? Catch up here:
Can Labor Really Adapt to AI?

You are remembered for the rules you break.
- Phil Knight

China wants AI to think like China
What could go wrong?

College professors want your kids to be progressive socialists
What could go wrong?

What is El Niño?
And how does it influence climate?

Economy

US colleges heading over an enrollment cliff
$500B slated for investment in Ohio data center
We should really thank the Boomers
AI’s share of economy has doubled

Labor

Even more healthcare cost increases are coming
Workers can’t keep up with inflation
There are great jobs for gamers

The Lone Star

Texas becomes #1 in data center construction
Anthropic signs $9B lease in Austin area
$5B hospital campus coming to Austin