I am reading “In the Plex”, the book on Google’s development + special brand of ideological Kool-aid, by Steven Levy.
An interviewee pointed out that we the citizenry + buying public should be careful with these massive tech companies. They may often be some of the Smartest Guys in the Room, but that doesn’t make them great representatives of the public, or deciders of how society should act + develop.
Though Gelernter looked on the overall prospect of mirror worlds with enthusiasm, he worried as well.
“I definitely feel ambivalent about mirror worlds. There are obvious risks of surveillance, but I think it poses deeper risks,” he said.
His main concern was that mirror worlds would be steered by the geeky corporations who built them, as opposed to the public.
“These risks should be confronted by society at large, not by techno-nerds,” he said.
“I don’t trust them. They are not broad-minded and don’t know enough. They don’t know enough history, they don’t have enough of a feel for the nature of society. I think that’s a recipe for disaster.”
