Merchants of Cope: AI takeoff is mass-producing cognitive dissonance, and soothing it pays
jankulveit · x · 2026-09-18
In the essay "Merchants of Cope", the author argues AI takeoff is generating cognitive dissonance at scale: humans want a normal, legible, predictable world, but evidence of AI progress is one tab away. Drawing on memetics, he frames widespread dissonance as a pond of free energy for cultural evolution, creating demand for stories, explanations and expert witnesses that explain it all away. Whoever synthesizes those memes will gain fame, influence and speaking invitations — expect merchants of cope.
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