Armin Ronacher: AI is Irontown — progress with no villains
mitsuhiko · x · 2026-11-10
Flask creator Armin Ronacher's essay 'AI and Irontown' rereads Princess Mononoke as an AI allegory: Lady Eboshi's Irontown gives lepers and outcasts work, protection and dignity while its iron and weapons destroy the forest — every faction's needs are legitimate and incompatible, and no one is a villain. He maps iron to AI: useful, empowering, consequential beyond those who benefit. The takeaway is Ashitaka's stance: don't pick sides, seek truth.
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