As an individual sitting at the intersection of technology and business in my professional and personal life, I repeatedly return to a large, philosophical quandary: is the future to be found in Atoms or Bits?
If you’re unfamiliar with these buzzwords, let me distill the context:
Atoms, as you may recall from middle school science classes, are the basic building blocks of all things physical — these units have mass, are tactile, and must be physically transported.
Note: I struggled in physics, so if this framing feels too reductive for you… thanks for bearing with me!
Bits, on the other hand, represent the components that make up digital information and intangible assets - think things like software, intellectual property, information systems (such as websites), and entertainment products.
In the techie business world, the conversation à la mode in recent years has been which of these two foundational elements companies should be investing in more. Since the dawn of commerce - and accelerated by the Industrial Revolution - consumer goods have been heavily dependent on and built with atoms. Products are made in factories, assembled by human hands, transported through physical means, and sold in storefronts. However, in the last few decades, more and more of the products that we consume are built from 0s and 1s - these are easier to distribute, highly scalable, and increasing (especially with the advent of AI) require far less “atomic” power to create.
Zooming out to analyze funding patterns, venture capital in recent years has increasingly concentrated on asset-light businesses, opting to finance companies built on the premise that bits—not atoms—are the future. Bits-driven businesses are cheaper than “atomic” ones and are highly appealing to investors due to the potential to maximize profitability. And where the money starts to go, businesses will follow. With big tech companies laying off large swaths of their atoms (humans) and focusing on advancing their bit strategies (such as proliferating AI adoption), we’ve entered what feels like a new wave of the “Agentic Revolution”.
Here’s where my contrarian critique comes in: is this truly what the future looks like? I of course do not know - crystal ball technology has not advanced that far yet - BUT I’d be lying if I didn’t say I have my serious doubts.
If you spend any time online (which, if you're reading this, I assume you do), you've probably seen the discourse around the internet’s changing nature. If you don’t occupy those spaces, let me fill you in! Things are feeling increasingly derivative - do I really need an app for every little thing I do? Social media pushes an accelerating cycle of “trends” as a way to commoditize our attention and engagement. And with AI-created art, videos, and writing starting to flood the web, things are feeling less and less personal.
The early days of the internet felt like an innocent space — a nursery for creativity and connection. Nowadays, it seems to have been overtaken by echo chambers, and content platforms are designed wholly with the purpose of monetization. While capital and development in Silicon Valley may be pouring into building progressively bit-focused businesses, much of the general public is starting to feel disillusioned by the way things are going online. As someone who bridges both worlds, I find it almost laughable - on the one hand, an industrious 22-year-old out of Berkeley believes he is building god on his laptop. On the other hand, a 22-year-old has just deleted TikTok because he was aware he had given up too much of his time to the addictive algorithm.
Personally, I believe the future lies in atoms. Software has had an incredible run, and I’m sure it will continue for some more time. However, I truly feel that a subtle grassroots movement has started to form of folks who feel called to push back against this capitalistic imposition of “helpful” technology developed with questionable motives. As contradictory as it sounds, endless scrolling has its limits. Humans crave connection, desire community, and want to feel fulfilled through physical, tactile, tangible experiences.
I can hear the AI researcher now: 'Once AI takes over, we'll enter an era of human flourishing, live on universal basic income, and find happiness through art, creativity, and other pursuits!' Call me a luddite but I’m skeptical! Seeing how the internet went on an evolutionary arch from its innocent inception into a space of constant commoditization and profit driven greed, I anticipate that AI’s advancement will also be fraught with challenges.
I hope we in the tech industry start to build in a way that is more considerate of the human experience and potential downstream consequences of our creations. In the meantime, I continue to focus my energy on my atomic experience— building meaningful relationships, enjoying the physical world, and resisting the omnipresent pull of bit-centric consumption.
I hope you join me!