The 11th Hour Panic
There is a specific kind of panic spreading through Silicon Valley right now. It isn’t the usual fear of a market crash or a failed product launch. It is the fear of the door closing.
I read a piece in the Wall Street Journal that captured this mood perfectly. The tech elite believe the AI boom is the “last window” to build generational wealth. The logic is terrifyingly simple: if AI does everything better and cheaper than humans, labor loses its value. And if labor loses its value, the traditional path to wealth - working hard, building a career, saving money - evaporates.
Cash Out Before the Robots Cash In
This explains the frantic, almost desperate energy in the Bay Area. It’s not just about innovation anymore; it’s a smash-and-grab. Founders and VCs are racing to secure their spot on the lifeboat before the ship of “human economic value” sinks.
It’s a grim irony. The people building the future are terrified of living in it without a billion-dollar safety net. They are betting on a world where money is meaningless for the masses, but absolutely essential for them to maintain control. The American Dream isn’t dying of natural causes; it’s being smothered by the very people who claim to be upgrading it.