Something big is happening
There’s a viral essay going around called “Something Big Is Happening.” The gist is: an AI startup founder (Matt Shumer) has stopped being polite about what’s coming for white-collar work, and the picture he paints is confronting.
It’s worth reading. It’ll probably keep you up. Especially if Auckland’s famous humidity continues.
(As usual, all my sources are at the end, so you can go down the same internet rabbit holes as me.)
AI feels like this all consuming change
Something big IS happening and it’s understandably got folk a little spooked
AI doomers and hypers unite
I’m pretty late to the party since everyone seems to have given their reckonings on “SBIH”, but all the same…. I have some thoughts.
It’s worth noting at this point that I have a bias: I’m almost as suspicious about AI doomers as I am AI hype-fiends. Like the “political spectrum horseshoe”, extreme takes on either side start looking very similar to each other.
Something fast is happening (to our nervous system)
I happened across Scott Barker’s very zen, stoic piece on his SubStack The Wake Up Call, and it puts the fear into context. And brings spirituality into the AI debate, which is often absent.
Barker’s argument: the printing press, electricity, the internet…. each was destabilising, each improved life for billions, and humans have always panicked at the transition.
We’re entering what he calls the Acceleration Decade. It’s real, it’s fast, and it’s also not the end of the film.
Nothing is ever as good or as bad as you think it is. That’s where your sandwich bet comes in.
The height of the stakes is entirely dependent on how hungry you are
Laura Burkhauser, CEO of Descript, had the smartest response to the Shumer essay I’ve seen so far. It’s a sensible take amongst a lot of amygdala-driven thinking.
Her concept: make a sandwich bet. You tell someone what you think will happen, and by when. If you’re wrong, you owe a sandwich. If you’re right, they owe you one.
What happens, at least to me, is that it drags existential fear down to something practical. The discipline of being specific.
She walked one of her team through it in real time: they went from “hints of complete societal collapse” to “non-farm job openings will be down 20% by the end of the year.” That’s a claim you can actually think (rather than worry) about.
My sandwich is on creation as well as destruction
Here’s mine: by the end of 2027, AI will have created at least 1.5 as many jobs as it eliminated. I’m not wildly optimistic, by the way.
Some jobs will go. I have serious concerns about the entry-level pipeline for the next generation.
But the pattern holds true for every major technology shift. The tide lifts all boats.
Businesses cutting headcount to ride the AI wave are betting against competitors who are using it to go faster.
Now I want yours.
Send me your sandwich bet on AI. Let me know what you think will happen, in your market or the wider economy, and by when. Specific claims only. No vague fearmongering. (If you must monger, monger with precision.)
I’ll feature the best ones in Bright Objects and in this blog (let me know if you’d rather stay anonymous.)
And tell me what sandwich you’re putting up for grabs. Mine is avocado, cherry tomatoes, and chicken on Vogel’s bread (a local NZ bread delicacy).
Consciously create your future
One thing is for sure: it’s going to be an interesting ride
In Parenthood (1989), Steve Martin’s character stops worrying and starts envisaging his life as an enjoyable roller coaster. The same logic applies here: separate the pace from the outcome.
Barker is probably right that the speed of change will test your nervous system before it tests your business model. The future, he reckons, will be beautiful… but you have to consciously create it.
Breathe.
Let’s get specific, and then let’s get on with it.
Something big is happening. Make your bet. Then let’s go!
Sources
- Matt Shumer, “Something Big Is Happening,” shumer.dev, February 2026
- Scott Barker, “How to Prepare for the Next Decade,” The Wake Up Call, February 2026
- Laura Burkhauser, “What’s your sandwich bet on AI and the labour market?”, LinkedIn, 2026
- Descript: AI video production
- Parenthood (1989) Roller Coaster scenes
If you know your business is all steak and needs some sizzle….. we’d love to hear from you.
Dave Hayward
Subscribe to Bright Objects Your essential marketing & tech insights
Warm personal stories wrapped around solid business, revenue and marketing strategy, how-tos, technology discussion (especially AI), philosophies and tactics. Occasionally, we’ll talk about personal productivity and things important to us (like astronomy and dogs).
