The New Abundance

AI can feel like the future is suddenly here, and as we get to grips with it’s potential, it’s worth paying attention to the past.

9 years ago, in a Long Now Foundation talk, Paul Saffo traced a line from the industrial revolution's peak during WWII, when production capabilities surged to meet wartime needs, to the birth of consumerism in the post-war era. This historical pivot highlighted a fascinating dynamic: the transition from scarcity to abundance and the resulting emergence of new scarcities.

It happened with software too. Cloud computing transitioned resources from scarce, physical commodities to abundant, cloud-based services. The scarcity now lies in personalized solutions that cater precisely to unique user needs and experiences.

Or take the telecommunications revolution, moving from landlines to mobile, which has made communication abundant. Yet, with this constant connection, the scarcity has shifted to meaningful, quality interactions.

The insight here is that in an era where content, cognition and connectivity are abundant, a real opportunity lies in identifying and addressing the emerging scarcities—be it in personalized digital experiences or in fostering genuine human connections, or something else entirely.

Looking around your world, what’s suddenly scarce now that AI has shown up? How can you create solutions that fill these new scarcities?