The Worthy House (Charles Haywood) The Age of Extraction: How Tech Platforms Conquered the Economy and Threaten Our Future Prosperity (Tim Wu)
Jan 2, 2026
Discover the dark side of tech's growth as economic power consolidates, threatening societal stability. The discussion examines historical optimism versus the reality of monopolization, emphasizing the dangers of unregulated platforms. Hear about vast data collection, the rise of private equity in healthcare, and the chilling effects of ideological capture on platforms. Solutions like robust antitrust enforcement are proposed, but doubts linger about political will. Explore how extraction breeds inequality and resentment in today's world.
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Platforms Are Modern Catalysts
- Platforms are catalytic spaces that reduce transaction frictions and match buyers and sellers at scale.
- Charles Haywood emphasizes modern platforms initially promised decentralization but evolved differently.
Regulation—or Its Absence—Shapes Platforms
- Internet platforms launched largely unregulated while pre-internet platforms were tightly regulated.
- Haywood argues that this regulatory gap enabled later extraction by tech firms.
IBM Example Of Antitrust Creating Markets
- IBM opened its mainframe architecture to third-party software after antitrust pressure.
- Haywood uses that example to show how enforcement can create whole industries.