tanteOct 28

We keep seeing startups who want to replace something valuable (therapy, counseling, tutoring, artistic expression) with some tech bullshit under the banner of democratization. But why do we need to invest so much in bad tech that doesn't work instead of just giving people access to what they need?

This is a sign for how fucking atrophied our mental muscles are. How limited our space for thinking about how things should be.

You want to democratize "going to therapy"? Make it "free" as in paid by socialized healthcare. You want to democratize "making art"? Give people money and free time to express themselves.

None of these things are meaningfully addressed through tech. It's always about the political struggle to give people what they need and deserve.

Show threadVery Human Robot
@tante the point of tech is to make the work we have to do, more effective, freeing people up to do things they want to do.
Unfortunately, when this is successful, it seems most people want to "have more stuff" and the more effective we get, the *more* we work.
(One way to think about it: the opportunity cost of not working goes up)
In other cases, the tech isn't successful, and in those cases, it generally goes away (like NFTs or metaverses)
Nov 1 at 11:56pmWeb