A 1996 LA Times column predicted the Internet would fail—and replace 'web' with 'agents' today
omooretweets · x · 2026-11-10
A 1996 LA Times piece by its tech editor, "The Dirty Secret About the Net," mirrors today's AI-agent discourse: startups' window had closed (Microsoft would own the net; Google came two years later), consumer adoption would take a decade+ (took <5 years), privacy and setup friction limited it to coastal elites, infrastructure was groaning, online shopping showed "few signs of taking off," and monetization was near-impossible. Best line: "Many new businesses, like the huge online bookstore Amazon, will find a niche." The author's prior piece: "The Fall of Apple Computer."
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