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tripleee • today at 6:12 PM • 1 reply • view on HN

> Massive toll

Example? "Massive" is relative, and it's almost never actually massive to the person paying. Software is incredibly cheap.

Adobe is primarily a professional program and even at higher fees it's a miniscule amount compared to the rate of the professional using it. Adobe isn't scooping up 20% of their earnings, it's more on the order of 0.07%.

The entities seemingly paying "massive tolls" are large corporations, who pay the big bucks because they're paying per seat, employing tens or hundreds of thousands of people. The toll per-person is, again, absolutely tiny and nothing compared to the salaries paid.

So in exchange for devaluing the labor of anyone in the firing lines of AI, removing a path to building a business with time, smarts and energy instead of capital, not actually fixing the lower and middle classes main categories of expenses (food,housing,healthcare) where is it going to make everyone better off?

I feel like anyone optimistic about these changes hasn't actually thought it through..


Replies

lelanthran • today at 6:23 PM

> Adobe is primarily a professional program and even at higher fees it's a miniscule amount compared to the rate of the professional using it.

I feel that that is an optimistic take - for now the professional using it can command high salaries. It will not remain that way. The endgame for AI in an economy is to drive the value of labour and knowledge to zero.

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