"AI is nature: wind, water, coal" — dev reflects on the missing supply-chain picture

relic_radiation · x · 2026-10-18

relicradiation admits a gap in his understanding of technology: the "full cycle / closed loop" — where AI's material flows actually come from. Quoting Atlas of AI: "Artificial intelligence is not magic, or placeless, or limitless. It is nature: wind, water, coal. These resources do not travel at the speed of light. Human labor drains water from specific reservoirs and rivers, digs copper, tellurium, lithium from specific mines." He wishes there were a college class on supply chain history.

Related event: AI Is a Place: The Water, Power and Minerals Behind Computation(2 posts)→

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