The AI Boom: A Tale of Unequal Fortunes in San Francisco
The mood around the current AI boom isn’t great, even in the tech industry, according to a lengthy social media post from Menlo Ventures partner Deedy Das.
San Francisco’s Frenetic Atmosphere
Das described San Francisco as “pretty frenetic right now” because “the divide in outcomes is the worst I’ve ever seen.”
The Uneven Distribution of Wealth
Using “back-of-the-envelope AI math,” he projected that there are about 10,000 people — founders and employees of companies like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Nvidia — who have “achieved retirement wealth well over $20 million,” while everyone else worries “that they can work their high-paying (but <$500,000) job all their lives and never get there.”
The Impact on Employment
Additionally, “layoffs are in full swing” and “many software engineers feel like their life skills are no longer useful,” leading to confusion about the best career paths and “deep unease with the job (and its future),” Das said.
Varied Reactions from the Tech Community
This has prompted some to roll their eyes at X, with entrepreneur Deva Hazarika saying that “most people in this position” are “incredibly lucky and can just make a choice to be happy”.
Another user suggested it was “pretty novel and also pretty nasty” that in the current cycle, “the same technology is both the lottery ticket and the thing that eats your backup.”
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