The Future isn't Inevitable, it's Intentional

Klarna's U-turn, Duolingo's AI-backlash, appstinance and OpenAI's acquisition prompt us to ask just what are we actually building for?

Over the past year, I've been tracking tiny cracks appearing in the "tech solves everything" façade. Where there are cracks, there are opportunities and last week, those cracks became a whopping big window.

From Klarna's u-turn¹ after replacing 700 customer service roles with AI, only to reinvest in human-led support months later, to Duolingo getting roasted by Gen Z for going "AI-first"² and losing the personality that made them king of the socials (later backtracking.) Then a UK study revealed that 47% of young people would prefer a world without the internet…entirely.³

All this on top of the predicted great exhaustion, current enshittification, the meh-gorithm. We’re tired, nothing works and everything looks the same.

I hate to say I told you so. Wherever you look is another AI-assisted product, initiative, workplace, program. I get it. But it’s also just a bit too much. It’s "AI-powered" everything time, from smart glasses to agents that promise to buy your groceries and help you concie…