Post #4184467

2026-07-29 04:52 UTC

The burning of the library of Alexandria only destroyed about 100.000 books, we're shredding over ten times as much for the profit of a handful of AI companies alone. We have turned the book burning into an industry and birthed a new era of anti-enlightenment as a result of it.

Replies (4)

@BenjaminKlein@mastodon.nu 2026-07-29 06:01

@ErikUden@mastodon.de AI companies' best customers are ignorant, so it makes perfect business sense to destroy knowledge they don't control. This creates perverse incentives, in the same way that a health care system that profits off the sick has no interest in preventative care.

Open ##4184466
@mrundkvist@archaeo.social 2026-07-29 05:43

@ErikUden@mastodon.de The AI biz is certainly destructive. But they're shredding *one copy* each of these books. The Library of Alexandria contained unique manuscripts. #ai #llm

Open ##4190099
@ErikUden@mastodon.de 2026-07-29 15:57

If I was a children's book author and wanted to write a villain that represents an always hungry machine eating unique books and the history they represent, my publisher would tell me it was over the top

Open ##4204124
@weargoggles@mastodon.social 2026-07-29 05:24

@ErikUden@mastodon.de It seems like a big number! However the number and rarity of books in the world has changed beyond recognition in the time since the great library burned in 48 AD.

Open ##4219378