Tim O'Reilly on AI development, regulation, copyright lawsuits, and more

Tim O’Reilly criticizes prevailing regulatory approaches to data privacy, considers how Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos became value-extractors, and more. The PS Say More Newsletter | [View this message in a web browser]( [PS Say More]( This week in Say More, PS talks with Tim O’Reilly, Founder and CEO of O’Reilly Media, Inc., is Visiting Professor of Practice at the University College London Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose and the author of [WTF?: What’s the Future and Why It’s Up to Us](. To read the full interview – in which O'Reilly shows how the imperatives of modern capitalism impede the development of broadly beneficial artificial intelligence, criticizes prevailing regulatory approaches to data privacy, considers how Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos went from value-creators to value-extractors, and more – [click here](. Tim O'Reilly Says More... [Michael Spence]( Syndicate: You have [called]( the generative artificial intelligence “bubble” a “productive” one, because the technology is being applied not only in the “betting economy,” but also in the “operating economy,” with “massive amounts of capital” being “used to build the infrastructure of the future.” But, as you write in your 2017 book [WTF?: What’s the Future and Why It’s Up to Us]( in “business and in technology, we often fail to see clearly what is ahead because we are navigating using old maps and sometimes even bad maps.” How, then, can we ensure that the AI infrastructure built today proves broadly beneficial tomorrow? Tim O’Reilly: Great question. The whole point of a bubble is that it’s a wild exploration of new possibilities – blank spaces on the existing map. But understanding the base layers of the map that still constrain our vision is important. One unexamined base layer that is impeding the development of broadly beneficial AI is the imperative of modern capitalism – especially in the United States – which places shareholder returns above all other considerations. Until we confront this limiting idea... [Continue reading]( O'Reilly's Say More interview is featured in [PS Quarterly: The Year Ahead 2024]( available now to PS Digital Plus and PS Premium subscribers. To read the rest of the issue, [subscribe now](. By the Way... PS: You have praised entrepreneurs like Elon Musk and firms like Amazon for their approach to technological – and business-model – innovation. What have they gotten right, and what lessons does their example hold for investors and business leaders? TO: It’s not easy to be a fan of either Musk or Jeff Bezos these days, but let me tell you what I once admired about them. The key to true entrepreneurial success is to create more value than you capture, and both of these entrepreneurs once created enormous amounts of value, not only for themselves, but also for many others. Recognizing the enormity of the climate threat, Musk placed very bold bets, which catalyzed the development of both the electric-car market and the commercial space market. In its heyday, Amazon created new opportunities for... [Continue reading]( [PS. Save 40% on a new Digital or Digital Plus subscription.]( [PS Say More: Robert Skidelsky on Keynes, AI, the future of work, and more]( [Robert Skidelsky on Keynes, AI, the future of work, and more]( Robert Skidelsky argues that the best way to secure supply chains is peace, highlights three grave risks posed by artificial intelligence, challenges the notion that science and religion should be regarded as opposites, and more. Skidelsky is a member of the British House of Lords, Professor Emeritus of Political Economy at Warwick University, and the author, most recently, of [The Machine Age: An Idea, a History, a Warning](. [Read now]( [PS. Sign up for PS newsletters.]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [LinkedIn]( Project Syndicate publishes and provides, on a not-for-profit basis, original commentary by the world's leading thinkers to more than 500 media outlets in over 150 countries. Receipt of this newsletter does not guarantee rights to re-publish any of its content. This newsletter is a service of [Project Syndicate](. [Change your newsletter preferences](. Follow us on [Facebook]( [Twitter]( and [YouTube](. © Project Syndicate, all rights reserved. [Unsubscribe from all newsletters](.