Booming How a bad bet built the internet: a short history of bubbles
Jan 14, 2026
Margaret O'Mara, a Professor of History at the University of Washington, dives into the historical patterns of economic bubbles, particularly in telecom and AI. She discusses the telecom boom of the 1990s, explaining how deregulation led to excessive investment in fiber networks, much of which went unused after the crash. O'Mara highlights lessons learned, including how some regions, like The Dalles, turned failed investments into long-term successes by attracting tech giants. She also sketches parallels between historical bubbles and today’s AI landscape, revealing who holds power in this digital age.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Telecom Overbuild Created Internet Backbone
- The 1990s telecom boom poured massive capital into laying fiber-optic networks far ahead of demand.
- That overbuild created essential physical internet infrastructure despite many companies later failing.
A 1999 Memory Captures Telecom Exuberance
- Joshua recalls sitting next to a small telecom executive in 1999 who gushed about limitless spending to lay fiber.
- That firsthand moment captured the era's exuberance and reckless expansion before the bust.
Dark Fiber Was A Forward-Looking Bet
- Much of the fiber laid in the late 1990s sat unused because consumer demand and enabling software lagged.
- Margaret O'Mara calls that capacity 'dark' but notes it later proved necessary for future growth.