Timothy Lee's textile analogy: cheap goods don't mean infinite demand in the AI era
binarybits · x · 2026-09-20
In the AGI economics thread with Toby Ord and Ryan Greenblatt, Timothy Lee cites textiles: not only did t-shirt value fall, but unit growth in the textile industry has also declined for decades — people don't need more shirts no matter how cheap. He also notes the 20th century precedent: as manufacturing got more efficient, manufacturing's share of employment fell while services rose. Core point: near-zero production cost doesn't imply infinite demand, so explosive-growth arguments must account for demand saturation.
Related event: Debating AI-Driven Industrial Explosion: Greenblatt vs. Timothy Lee(19 posts)→
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