"You Can't Speedrun Yourself": on acedia and cheap intelligence
soumitrashukla9 · x · 2026-10-10
Alex Chalmers of Cosmos Institute published an essay, You Can't Speedrun Yourself, on the myth of high-level work.
Starting from the fourth-century monks' 'noonday demon' acedia—an aversion toward goods reachable only through slow, determined effort—the author draws a parallel to today: cheap intelligence challenges the longstanding model of formation in which judgment is acquired through perseverance and apprenticeship, while AI increasingly offers the fruits of determined work without the hard work.
The essay pushes back on the common optimist response that AI will automate drudgery while humans keep the formative 'good work'.
Related event: Essay Draws on Monasticism to Question AI-Era Shortcuts(2 posts)→
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