Intelligence is a commodity. Context is the real AI Moat • Hacker News Board

Re: Intelligence is a commodity. Context is the real AI Moat

#21

Post by WarmWash » Thu, Mar 05, 2026, 5:06 PM UTC

jfalcon wrote: post #7

>someone raised the question of “what would be the role of humans in an AI-first society”. Norbert Wiener, considered to be the father of Cybernetics, wrote a book back in the 1950's entitled "The Human Use of Human Beings" that brings up these questions in the early days of digital electronics and control systems. In it, he brings up things like: - 'Robots enslaving humans for doing jobs better suited by robots due…

>- 'Automation will lead to immediate devaluation of human labor that is routine. Society needs to decouple a person's "worth" from their "utility as a tool".'

I have this vision that in absence of the ability for people to form social hierarchies on the back of their economic value to society, there will be this AI fueled class hierarchy of people's general social ability. So rather than money determining your neighborhood, your ability to not be violent or crazy does.

Re: Intelligence is a commodity. Context is the real AI Moat

#22

Post by martin_drapeau » Thu, Mar 05, 2026, 5:11 PM UTC

7777777phil wrote: post #2

API prices dropped 97% in two years so the model layer is already a commodity. The question is which context layer actually sticks. The OpenClaw example in the article (400K lines to 4K) is a nice proof point for what happens when context replaces code. I've been arguing for some time now that it's the "organizational world model," the accumulated process knowledge unique to each company that's genuinely hard to repl…

100%

Currently integrating an AI Assistant with read tools (Retrieval-Augmented Generation or RAG as they say). Many policies we are writing are providing context (what are entities and how they relate). Projecting to when we add write tools, context is everything.

Re: Intelligence is a commodity. Context is the real AI Moat

#23

Post by infecto » Thu, Mar 05, 2026, 5:12 PM UTC

badgersnake wrote: post #15

simianwords wrote: post #14

I have my own challenge: I think LLMs can do everything that a human can do and typically way better if the context required for the problem can fit in 10,000 tokens. For now this challenge is text only. Can we think of anything that LLMs can’t do?

* code * write interesting prose * generate realistic images

> Only really dumb people think that. Or maybe you are an LLM.

You deleted it but still come on. Why would you even think to write that?

Re: Intelligence is a commodity. Context is the real AI Moat

#24

Post by seanhunter » Thu, Mar 05, 2026, 5:12 PM UTC

simianwords wrote: post #14

I have my own challenge: I think LLMs can do everything that a human can do and typically way better if the context required for the problem can fit in 10,000 tokens. For now this challenge is text only. Can we think of anything that LLMs can’t do?

This is a “no true scotsman” challenge. People are going to say llms can’t do certain things and you are going to say they can.

Not very interesting.

Re: Intelligence is a commodity. Context is the real AI Moat

#25

Post by zurfer » Thu, Mar 05, 2026, 5:12 PM UTC

whenever i worry that AI will eventually do all the work I remind myself that the world is full of almost infinite problems and we'll continue to have a choice to be problem solvers over just consumers.

Re: Intelligence is a commodity. Context is the real AI Moat

#26

Post by keiferski » Thu, Mar 05, 2026, 5:13 PM UTC

philipwhiuk wrote: post #11

> But the topic of conversation that I enjoyed the most was when someone raised the question of “what would be the role of humans in an AI-first society”. Some were skeptical about whether we are ever going to reach an AI-first society. If we understand as an AI-first society, one where the fabric of the economy and society is automated through agents interacting with each other without human interaction, I think tha…

Right now, 30 seconds ago, I asked ChatGPT to tell me about a book I found that was written in the 60s.

It made up the entire description. When I pointed this out, it apologized and then made up another description.

The idea that this is going to lead to superintelligence in a few years is absolutely nonsense.

Re: Intelligence is a commodity. Context is the real AI Moat

#27

Post by erikerikson » Thu, Mar 05, 2026, 5:16 PM UTC

WarmWash wrote: post #21

jfalcon wrote: post #7

>someone raised the question of “what would be the role of humans in an AI-first society”. Norbert Wiener, considered to be the father of Cybernetics, wrote a book back in the 1950's entitled "The Human Use of Human Beings" that brings up these questions in the early days of digital electronics and control systems. In it, he brings up things like: - 'Robots enslaving humans for doing jobs better suited by robots due…

>- 'Automation will lead to immediate devaluation of human labor that is routine. Society needs to decouple a person's "worth" from their "utility as a tool".' I have this vision that in absence of the ability for people to form social hierarchies on the back of their economic value to society, there will be this AI fueled class hierarchy of people's general social ability. So rather than money determining your neigh…

This seems to suggest a single dimensional evaluation. The complexity of social compatibility is high and the potential capacity to evaluate could also be greater.

Re: Intelligence is a commodity. Context is the real AI Moat

#28

Post by simianwords » Thu, Mar 05, 2026, 5:18 PM UTC

seanhunter wrote: post #24

simianwords wrote: post #14

I have my own challenge: I think LLMs can do everything that a human can do and typically way better if the context required for the problem can fit in 10,000 tokens. For now this challenge is text only. Can we think of anything that LLMs can’t do?

This is a “no true scotsman” challenge. People are going to say llms can’t do certain things and you are going to say they can. Not very interesting.

Let’s ask in good faith. Can you suggest something that it can’t do? Functional things. I’ll reply in good faith and consider it.

Re: Intelligence is a commodity. Context is the real AI Moat

#29

Post by rembal » Thu, Mar 05, 2026, 5:21 PM UTC

The pyramids in the article are missing "energy" and "capital": in the world where intelligence becomes a commodity only those two matter. Capital to buy the hardware and install it, and energy to run it. Models already are a commodity, and "physical is the new king".

As a side note, if you believe that because of the agents doing most of the work we will face the problem of what do we do with the all the free time (with presumably UBI in place), please contact me, I have a bridge to sell you.

Re: Intelligence is a commodity. Context is the real AI Moat

#30

Post by seanhunter » Thu, Mar 05, 2026, 5:22 PM UTC

simianwords wrote: post #28

seanhunter wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is a “no true scotsman” challenge. People are going to say llms can’t do certain things and you are going to say they can. Not very interesting.

Let’s ask in good faith. Can you suggest something that it can’t do? Functional things. I’ll reply in good faith and consider it.

Say I suggest something : Play a valid game of chess at club level (elo approx 1200 say) using algebraic notation.

Then you’re either going to say it can or you’re going to say that requires more than 10000 tokens.

This isn’t an interesting conversation and I don’t think you are presenting this challenge in good faith for the reason I gave above.