AI bubble could drive real progress while investors lose money, says Zurich professor Thorsten Hens
WeBeBallin · reddit · 2026-09-19
Thorsten Hens, professor of financial economics at the University of Zurich, argues in an interview that speculative bubbles can advance technology even when backers lose money.
- Core argument: decentralized investment gets many different ideas tried; the process involves exaggeration, failures and bubbles, but also produces discoveries that are hard to plan in advance
- Analogy: building a rocket and blowing it up — some learning only comes from doing the thing and experiencing consequences
- Applied to AI: if an expectations collapse leaves behind useful tools, cheaper methods and research others can build on, the spending may still have been worthwhile for society — less comforting if your pension funded the experiment
- Counterpoint: money, talent and electricity have other uses; many attempts don't automatically justify the cost, and some may just be expensive duplication
Interview available on YouTube, relevant discussion starts around 11:06.
More from AGI Musings
- Silicon Valley Oversold What AI Brings, Underestimated People's Fear of Losing — signulll · 2026-11-04
- Alignment researchers debate: the RL that grants agency also breeds misalignment — davidmanheim · 2026-11-04
- Bindu Reddy: AI fear-mongering has put the whole technology at risk in the US — bindureddy · 2026-11-04
- AI welfare vs AI safety: 'domesticate AIs like dogs' argument sparks debate — repligate · 2026-11-04
- Intent, not taste, is the real differentiator in the AI era — and it can't be bought — edelwax · 2026-11-04
- "11 biggest AI lies": viral Reddit takedown of solo billionaire and utopia promises — Own_Garage_1478 · 2026-11-04