AI agents may dismantle how markets exploit consumer bounded rationality
NathanpmYoung · x · 2026-10-11
Patrick Collison muses (amplified by stuartbuck) that companies are in some sense the original superintelligence: they use their amortized cognitive surplus against inattentive, underinformed, irrational consumers — think overpriced insurance upsells at booking checkout. Herbert Simon's "bounded rationality" has long been a profit source for firms.
With personal AI agents that compare prices, read fine print and spot dark patterns, the market mechanisms exploiting consumer bounded rationality may be systematically disrupted, rebalancing the optimization asymmetry between firms and individuals.
Related event: Patrick Collison: Personal AI Agents Will Reshape Commerce(3 posts)→
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