M.C.'s transformation mirrors a shift happening everywhere. This isn't just another tech cycle—it's a fundamental recalculation of human value.
The numbers are staggering. Recent McKinsey surveys. It's the fastest technology adoption curve in recorded history. Goldman Sachs economists project that generative AI could automate activities accounting for about one‑fifth of current work activities, with the biggest impact on knowledge workers who once thought their expertise made them automation-proof².
Statistics don't capture the gut punch of watching AI outperform you. Or the 3 AM crisis when you wonder if your expertise just became worthless.
The doomsayers miss history's pattern: automation doesn't replace humans—it reveals what's most human about work. It strips the mechanical and amplifies the meaningful.
When spreadsheet software arrived in the 1980s, accountants feared for their jobs. Instead, freed from manual calculations, they evolved into strategic advisors. When CAD software automated drafting, architects didn't disappear—they focused on the creative and cultural dimensions of design. When digital photography eliminated darkrooms, photographers didn't vanish—they became visual storytellers.
But this time feels different because it is different. Previous automation waves targeted manual or routine cognitive tasks. Generative AI targets creativity, analysis, and communication—capabilities we thought defined human intelligence itself.