Drawing on historical parallels from photography, printing, calculators, and digital music, this piece argues that AI follows a recurring 'democratisation paradox': new technologies lower barriers to creation while simultaneously elevating appreciation for skilled work. Rather than eliminating fields, they restructure them. The deeper concern is not AI itself but whether capitalist economic systems will fairly compensate human creators in an AI-augmented world. Short-term job displacement is expected, especially in large enterprises, with medium-term recovery focused on roles that leverage AI capabilities. Power concentration among tech giants (Google, Amazon, OpenAI, Meta) is identified as the real systemic risk, as they control the most powerful AI models and shape the economics of creative and knowledge work.
Table of contents
The Democratisation Paradox #The Creative Landscape is Forever in Transition #Beyond Technology: Capitalism & Systemic Economics #Moving Forward: Balancing Progress and Humanity #Abstract #References #Sort: