Jacobin Radio The Dig: Silicon Empires w/ Nick Srnicek
Jan 28, 2026
Nick Srnicek, academic and author on the digital economy and technology politics. He maps the AI stack from chips to apps. He explores business models chasing AGI and how cloud providers exert control. He compares U.S. and China tech strategies and the rise of techno‑nationalism. He discusses automation’s uneven effects on work and the political stakes of AI’s militarization.
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AI's Power Comes From Its Promise
- AI's centrality comes from the promise that it's a transformative general-purpose technology.
- Early-mover advantages make AI especially attractive to firms and states racing for dominance.
Where The Real Value Likely Lies
- Diffusion of applications, not model invention, historically creates most economic value from GPTs.
- AI may be unique if models plus APIs let builders recapture more downstream value than past GPTs.
The Four-Layer AI Stack
- The AI ecosystem is layered: chips, cloud infrastructure, models, and apps, with diffusion the most uncertain layer.
- Historically GPT creators rarely capture the most value, which typically accrues to downstream applications.
