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Zeitgeist — a spike by Chris Gathercole
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Premium: AI Is Getting Way Too Expensive

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  • Argues the AI industry debate over theoretical job displacement distracts from the real economic problem: infrastructure investment scaled far beyond any plausible profitable return.
  • Cites industry-wide trailing-twelve-month revenues of roughly $110B against $122B raised by OpenAI alone in March 2026, and a $145B gap between Q1 2026 AI startup funding and total industry revenues.
  • Frames the core bind: hyperscalers need to raise compute prices to reach profitability, but their main AI customers can’t absorb higher rates.
  • Practical takeaway: the longer infrastructure spend outpaces revenue, the harder the eventual reckoning — a widening gap rather than a stabilizing one. (Premium post; only the preview was accessible.)